Premier League: United Squeak By Fulham in London

Manchester United traveled south to London for a fixture against Fulham at Craven Cottage in the Premier League earlier today. Fulham don’t have a good record against United in the past few seasons, but the Red Devils’ miserable current form would encourage any team that they could sneak a result.

This match was rather laborious, like some of the results pre-Manchester Derby. United would establish some possession, but it would be fairly harmless possession with Fulham dug in deep. It’s all on the tape for opposition managers, and Fulham’s manager Marco Silva had clearly watched his fair share of it. It’s obvious to everyone and anyone that United struggle to break down teams that sit in the low block. Silva put 9 to 10 men behind the ball, and United couldn’t do anything about it for long stretches of the match. Credit again to keeper Andre Onana for making some key saves on the rare occasions that Fulham ventured forward, but United were once again ineffective in attack.

The key substitution from manager Erik ten Hag was to bring on winger Facundo Pellistri on 63 minutes, with the match still being 0-0. Pellistri has generally impressed when he comes on as a substitute, as his quickness with the ball at his feet is a struggle for tired to defenders to keep up with. United still struggled to forge clear openings for a bit longer though. Then, something changed. It must have been some kind of signal from ETH, or perhaps a pre-planned tactic, but in the final 10-12 minutes or so United really poured on the pressure going forward. Our attackers and midfielders were doing everything they could to either win the ball high up the pitch or get the ball into dangerous areas and create chances.

United were rewarded for their pressure in stoppage time. Pellistri had managed to dribble and wriggle his way into the box with the ball, but it was eventually won and cleared by a Cottagers defender. His low clearance was poor however, and due to the press from Pellistri and having men forward, it fell straight to midfielder Bruno Fernandes on the edge of the box. Bruno tried to find Pellistri with a pass, but after some deflections in the area it came straight back to Bruno. He took a touch to get the ball onto his preferred right foot and let off a low shot that trickled through the entire defense and then rolled in past keeper Bernd Leno. The pressure forced a mistake and United capitalized. That is how ETH likes his teams to play, and the lads executed the plan perfectly. United won 1-0 and secured three points away!

There’s two different ways to look at this match, and each has a degree of validity. The optimist would correctly point out that United have won three straight away matches in the Prem for the first time since 2020. Another positive was the performances of Pellistri, Onana, center back Harry Maguire, and right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka (back from injury!). ETH is now also the joint-fastest United manager to secure 50 wins, and his substitutions were very good today. The final 10 minutes or so was very aggressive and direct football from United, and it was great to see the players endeavoring so hard to try and find a winner.

The pessimist would say that this was more of the same poor play that has plagued United all season. They looked lost in attack for good portions of the match. Yes they turned it on at the end, but a better team than Fulham would have scored at least 1 or 2 goals on us before we came alive and started playing better. Winger Antony dos Santos was yet again wasteful in possession and the team improved significantly when he was taken off. ETH seems to want to stick by him, but there’s going to need to come a point where he realizes that a temporary benching may do Antony some good. It’s true that forward Marcus Rashford was injured pre-match and didn’t play, although it’s unclear how much he would have helped today anyway given his continued poor form.

A victory is great, and I will never complain about a winner in stoppage time. But there’s no way to know if this win actually means something or not. We’ve seen many false dawns with this United team this season, so a narrow victory over mediocre opposition means very little if they go out and lay an egg in the next match. And that next match is a big one, as United will fly to Denmark to take on FC Copenhagen in the Champions League on Wednesday. Three points are desperately needed, as United are third in the group and need all the help they can get to catch Galatasaray in 2nd.

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

FA Cup: United Through to the Semifinals After Fulham Implode

Manchester United played host to west London side Fulham FC today in the quarterfinals of the FA Cup. If United had all players available they would have been heavy favorites, but the absence of regular starters Casemiro (suspension), Christian Eriksen (injury), and Raphael Varane (injury) would have been encouraging to Fulham and manager Marco Silva. Fulham have historically struggled at Old Trafford, but Silva knew that today would likely present an opportunity for an upset. Fulham have been in good form generally this season, which is a testament to the job Silva has done with them given that they were only promoted from the Championship last season. Meanwhile, United manager Erik ten Hag and the players have made it clear that they are pushing for another trophy this season, so he named as strong a team as he could possibly select.

The first half was almost all Fulham. They were more dominant in possession almost the entire opening 45 minutes. United were simply being over-run in midfield. The absences of Casemiro and Eriksen were very noticeable. Fulham’s best player by a mile was midfielder João Palhinha. He won tackles, played some excellent passes, and was able to carry the ball through United’s midfield routinely. There was a lack of energy by the Red Devils today, too. They looked tired. Perhaps the grueling fixture list this season was finally taking it’s toll a bit. Still, despite their dominance, Fulham were having trouble creating clear chances. United’s back line, marshalled by center back Lisandro Martinez, was the only unit of the team playing with any degree of ferocity.

United really struggled going forward as well. Forward Marcus Rashford was isolated on the left hand side, midfielder Bruno Fernandes’s passing was more wayward than accurate, and winger/midfielder Jadon Sancho didn’t look like he knew where he was supposed to play. No matter how much ETH shuffled the forward line, they really struggled to make Fulham keeper Bernd Leno earn his paycheck in the first half. Midfielder Marcel Sabitzer forced him into a fairly routine save on 40 minutes, but that was about as dangerous as things got for the Black and Whites from London. So while Fulham were the better of the two teams, it was 0-0 after 45 minutes.

All of Old Trafford and most of the people watching would have expected a second half response from United. This is because ETH has proven himself to be an effective reader of the game, and also an effective motivator. United needed to up their intensity a bit, but instead what we got was Fulham taking things up a notch instead. They won a succession of corners that really put United under a lot of pressure, and they finally got their break-through from talismanic striker Aleksandar Mitrović on 50 minutes. Fulham forced a corner after a series fine saves from keeper David De Gea, at first to deny left back Antonee Robinson and then again from winger Willian. For the goal, it was former United midfielder Andreas Pereira playing the ball in over the top, and it was flicked on into the path of Mitrović by Fulham center back Issa Diop. Mitrović stuck his left leg out and fired home from about 5 yards out, despite what appeared to be a foul on Rashford in the build-up to the goal. Fulham were good value for their lead, and a VAR check confirmed there was no foul on Rashford. An argument could be made that he was indeed fouled, but again the bigger issue was United letting Fulham outplay them for 50 minutes. 0-1 to the Londoners.

Things kept going Fulham’s way for another 20 minutes or so after that as well. United’s response to going down was rather tepid, and Fulham kept pushing. De Gea did well to athletically save a headed effort from Mitrović on 66 minutes, and Mitrović saw another header go wide just seconds after that. United were truly under the cosh and lucky not to be down by 2.

The entire nature and complexion of this match changed on 72 minutes. United broke forward and got into a promising position for the first time in a while, with the ball finding Sancho in a forward position after a good run and pass from substitute winger Antony dos Santos. Sancho took the ball around Leno, but his shot from 12 yards was cleared off the line by Willian at the near post. A corner was given by referee Chris Kavanagh, but there were calls from United supporters and players alike for a VAR check on the clearance. Upon review, it was clear that Willian stuck his arm out and used his hand to clear the ball! As Kavanagh made his way to the pitch-side monitor to check for a penalty, Silva said something to either him or the 4th official on the touchline. Kavanagh took issue with it, and he showed Fulham’s manager a red card! He then checked the replay and awarded the penalty, while simultaneously sending off Willian for a deliberate handball in the box. As if the situation wasn’t bad enough for Fulham, Mitrović then decided to get in the referee’s face as well, and the confrontation escalated to Mitrović actually shoving Kavanagh! There is no professional sport where can you deliberately contact the referee and get away unpunished, and this sport is no different. Kavanagh instantly went back to his pocket and showed Mitrović a red card too! Absolutely wild.

In the span of about 40 seconds, Fulham saw their manager, striker, and winger all sent off. They were down to 9 men for the final 20 minutes or so, with United also having a penalty awarded to them for the handball. Bruno stepped up to the spot and casually sent Leno the wrong way, making it 1-1 to United! The Red Devils smelled blood, and it was apparent that Fulham were shell-shocked by the mad decisions of Silva, Willian, and Mitrović. United were ahead just 2 minutes later, with left back Luke Shaw operating in acres of space before he crossed back into the middle. Sabitzer was on hand to flash down and back-heel the cross into the goal, with Leno unable to keep it out. Talk about a wild swing! United went from 11 vs 11 and down a goal to up 2-1 versus 9 men in the span of about five minutes. Well done to Sabitzer for opening his goal scoring account today as well!

Fulham’s heads were gone after that, and they didn’t have the numbers to cause United problems going forward. Once it was 2-1, United never looked like conceding another goal. They kept possession and created more chances going forward as well. They got their third deep into stoppage time, with Bruno firing home decisively from about 12 yards out after being found by substitute midfielder Fred. A good goal from Bruno to seal the deal, but United were definitely aided by their numerical advantage. The final whistle blew and United won 3-1, having earned themselves a second Wembley trip this season.

Make no mistake, Fulham gave this game away. Up until 72 minutes, they were the better side and looked like they would be the ones moving on to the semis. United looked fatigued, the tactics from ETH weren’t great until the subs started coming on, and Fulham were more or less bossing the game. I have been watching this sport for 20+ years, and I don’t think I’ve seen a bigger implosion and mental collapse from a team than what I saw from Fulham today. I don’t know what was said by Silva to warrant his sending off, and I am even more in the dark as to what he was complaining about. Kavanagh hadn’t even awarded the penalty before Silva started mouthing off to him. Willian’s decision to use his hand was also mystifying, but he probably thought it was necessary to prevent a goal. The biggest mystery here though is why Mitrović felt the need to start remonstrating with the official. Mitrović has a reputation for being a hot-headed and aggressive player, but his decision to get into the ref’s face and then shove him was pure recklessness. Fulham had the game in hand, and even with a penalty to United it was still 1-0 with 10 men at that point. Had Bruno missed the penalty, Mitrović still could have helped his team get a result. He has to be smarter there. He has to realize the big picture of the situation and stay out of the referee’s face, no matter how upset he was. But it was 3 red cards shown to Fulham in the span of about 40 seconds, and all 3 were probably deserved. A total and complete mental implosion from Fulham FC today.

ETH knew his side got away with one today, and he rightfully praised De Gea’s timely saves in the second half to keep United in the match. Sometimes you have to be lucky in this game, and that is precisely what happened today. For 72 minutes, United were second-best. I am still frankly in a degree of disbelief that the colossal mental collapse of Fulham. United were better once they were down to 9 men and it was 1-1, but that is to be expected at this level with the quality United have. Credit to Kavanagh for holding his nerve today, although I would like to know what Silva said to him that earned him a red. A manager being red-carded for dissent is not unprecedented, but it is exceptionally rare. Fulham will be absolutely kicking themselves today. Well done to United for immediately taking advantage of the situation and getting their second goal just moments after the first one went in.

United do not have another match until April 2nd, as we have hit the March international break. Players that have been called up to play for their countries will go and do so, with some others getting a little bit of a break. England face Italy in a Euro 2024 qualifier on March 23rd, with another qualifier against Ukraine on March 26th. United’s next match is in the Premier League away to Newcastle, and they will be returning to Wembley for the FA Cup Semifinals against Brighton & Hove Albion at the end of April. I do think some of our players need a break, so some of them having the next two weeks off to recover will do them wonders.

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

Fulham Fall in Fergie Time — Ronaldo Shoots His Big Dumb Mouth Off

Manchester United traveled south to London for the final Premier League match before the winter break against newly-promoted Fulham FC at Craven Cottage. United have traditionally been dominant over Fulham, but manager Marco Silva is a capable tactician and they are a confident team when at home. Manager Erik ten Hag picked a strong if somewhat rotated team for this match, knowing that a win would cement the Red Devils’ grip on fifth place going into the break.

Fulham were probably the better side in the first ten minutes, but United grew into the game and got the first goal somewhat against the run of play. Casemiro won the ball back inside the center circle and United sprung into attack very quickly. The ball was played forward by Christian Eriksen into the feet of Anthony Martial, who turned quickly and brought the ball forward towards the Fulham penalty area. He played it left to Bruno Fernandes, who hit the ball first time on a return low and across the face of the Fulham goal. Eriksen had continued his run and was unmarked as he tapped home for his first United goal! The goal was a typical one from United under ETH: win the ball high up the pitch via press, get it into the forward playmakers quickly, and work the ball into the goal via precise passing.

Fulham responded well to the goal though, encouraged by their raucous home crowd. They slowly but surely established the majority of the possession, and managed to fashion a few half chances as the half matured. United had the best chance for the next goal though, once again via Eriksen. This time though his shot from close range was just wide of the left-hand post. Halftime saw the match finely poised at 1-0.

Fulham continued their ascendency however and were rewarded for their possession and chances created just after the hour mark, and it was a familiar face to United that did it. Substitute winger Daniel James was the first to get to a cross into the area, and he poked it home past keeper David De Gea with almost his first touch. Poor marking from United, really. Respect to James however for not celebrating after scoring. He had some good games for United and there are many at the club who wish he was still playing for us. He was a good super-sub for the club for sure, but his game was a little one-dimensional during his time at United and he sometimes went missing from matches. Well done to him in the end for keeping at it in west London.

As more substitutions were made and the players grew more tired, the pace of the game slowed down significantly. Fulham were possessing the ball but not really making any inroads, while United seemed somewhat content with the occasional counter-attack or fast break to create a chance. It must be said that United did squander a fair few chances throughout the match, in both halves. This match had the word “draw” written all over it.

But for all the tactical issues today, this team never stops trying. Time and time again this season, they find a way to get a late goal. Such a goal was needed today, and they got one in thrilling fashion after a lovely move down the left hand side. The ball was played forward in short and quick passes to get around the Fulham press, before it found substitute winger Alejandro Garnacho on the left wing. He played a long 1-2 with Eriksen, then showed amazing acceleration to reach Eriksen’s return pass and poke it home first time into the far corner of Fulham keeper Bernd Leno’s goal. Fulham players and fans were in shock while the lads in red celebrated wildly. What a run from Garnacho. He has elite quickness in short bursts and the Fulham defender had no chance. A very “Manchester United” goal in the sense that it was scored in Fergie time by a graduate of our youth academy. Garnacho is going to be a star in this league for sure!

A few things though – yes a win is a win and we will celebrate as such, but this match should have been over in the first half. We still can’t finish consistently and had to rely on a moment of genius to win a match instead of killing it off early. It’s true that some usual starters were out today, but Fulham were there for the taking in the first half. It was also worrying that in our midfield of Casemiro, Bruno, and Eriksen that we can’t maintain possession for long spells against a side like Fulham. Perhaps that was by design tactically today, but I would have liked to see us “defend from the front” a bit more by possessing the ball and not letting Fulham camp out in our half. Against better sides, that is a recipe for losing. Still need a striker in January who can finish off all these chances we create.

United go into the winter break comfortably in 5th place, just three points off 4th place with a game in hand. Considering where we were after the first two matches, I am generally happy with the direction the team is heading in. Glazers Out still of course!

***

Speaking of needing a new striker, current striker Cristiano Ronaldo has now certainly played his last match for Manchester United and will be gone after the World Cup. His dramatic saga this season has been documented on this blog, and the latest chapter in this rather moronic story is Ronaldo going on a British talk show to talk about how he has been “disrespected” by the club and how he feels he is being “forced out.” He took shots in the explosive interview at United’s directors, ETH, and even former teammate Wayne Rooney. Ronaldo did not play in today’s match, but did play in the loss against Aston Villa last weekend.

Ronaldo has always had an ego, but he has now become arrogant and petulant. He seems to think he his owed a place in the team routinely based on his contributions in the past, but that is simply not how football works. He has not been good this season, plain and simple. He is either unwilling or unable to fit into ETH’s tactical system. If he is not scoring goals, he simply does not contribute much to this team. Routinely, the team plays better when he is not in the lineup. Ronaldo does not seem to be able to accept that reality.

This interview has tarnished his legacy. He has forgotten that no one man is bigger than Manchester United, even a player with that stature of Ronaldo. His exit was already pretty likely even before he went on television and started spouting off nonsense, but it seemed that he and ETH had at least temporarily made nice. Ronaldo was even named captain for a match a few weeks ago. He clearly doesn’t feel that was enough, though. Whatever favor he sought to gain by explaining his side of things, I think ultimately this will not be viewed positively. He comes across like a child stomping his feet in a grocery store because his parent won’t let him run around the store. No one is forcing him out except for himself. He’d be an amazing super sub when United need a goal, but he isn’t willing to accept that role.

Goodbye, Ronaldo. We’ll forever be grateful for the trophies but you’re done now, mate. Enjoy the big paycheck from the MLS or the homecoming if you go to Portugal. Just keep your mouth shut about the club that helped mold you into what you are today.