Premier League: Victory Over Fulham and Final Day Round-Up

Manchester United played host to London side Fulham FC earlier today at Old Trafford in the final match of the 2022-2023 Premier League season. This was not really a high-stakes match as United had already solidified their top-4 spot, while Fulham were mathematically locked into 10th place and therefore unable to reach a European spot. Still, there was always pride on the line and the fairly strong team fielded by manager Erik ten Hag indicated that he wanted 3rd place locked up. If United earned an equal or better result than Newcastle, they would indeed finish 3rd. There was also a lot of drama at the bottom of the Prem table in the relegation battle, but let’s recap the Red Devils’ match first.

The match was fairly tepid to start out but United were on the front foot for the most part and creating the chances. Fulham somewhat unexpectedly forged themselves ahead on 19 minutes thanks to a header from right back Kenny Tete. Fulham had won a corner, which was swung in to the box by winger Willian. Tete lost his marker at the near post, and he nodded in from what was effectively point-blank range. Fulham going ahead was not on the cards, and United’s misery was almost doubled when the referee awarded Fulham a penalty on 25 minutes after midfielder Casemiro was adjudged to have committed a foul in the box. There weren’t too many protests from anyone in a red shirt, and replays showed a pretty clear foul. Cottagers striker Aleksandar Mitrović stepped up to the spot, but his low effort lacked power and placement. De Gea was able to get down to his left and paw away the shot! Great penalty save from De Gea, especially because De Gea isn’t known as a penalty stopper. The save galvanized the rest of the Red Devils though and they grew into the game quickly.

Winger Alejandro Garnacho went close to an equalizer when his shot from a tight angle struck the crossbar, but United continued to push. They were rewarded for their efforts on 39 minutes when winger Jadon Sancho bundled home a loose ball in the box. Midfielder Fred had taken a good touch to get the ball into the area, but he was met by a Fulham defender that didn’t fully clear the ball. Sancho took a touch and then slid the ball in low past Fulham keeper Bernd Leno. There was a bit of luck about the goal given the good bounce to Sancho, but United had been the dominant side since the penalty save and were good value for their equalizer. The first half finished at 1-1. Newcastle were also level in their match against Chelsea, which meant United were a scant 45 minutes away from a 3rd place finish.

United did not have to wait too long for the go-ahead goal. They had continued their dominance from the latter part of the first half and found the back of the net again on 55 minutes. Fred played a truly sublime through-ball into the feet of fellow midfielder Bruno Fernandes, whom had found a gap in the Fulham back-4 to run into. He latched onto the ball, took it around Leno through on goal, and finished into an empty with ease. A great run and finish from Bruno, but Fred needs all the credit for excellent vision and hitting an absolutely perfect ball. 2-1!

There were half-chances created by both sides in the final 35 minutes, with both keepers forced into fairly routine saves here and there. ETH made some key substitutions as well so as to provide rest and prevent injury to the big players before the FA Cup Final next Saturday. The rhythm of the game slowed down a bit, with the final 10 minutes plus stoppage time feeling more like a training session than a match. That happens on the final day sometimes when there is nothing to play for. The final whistle blew after United cleared a Fulham free kick and the lads locked up a 3rd place finish!

Given how bad this team was last season, a 3rd place finish on 75 points with the League Cup in hand and the opportunity to win another trophy should be regarded as a success. It is true that a club like United needs to be challenging for the league title, but we are clearly still in the early stages of the ETH rebuild. He brought in some absolutely massive players last summer, and some of our pre-existing players improved significantly this season too. We finally have a coherent style of football that the players have bought into. Biggest turning point of the season was early on though. We had lost our first two matches against Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion, after which ETH made the players run 14 KM (roughly 8.7 miles) during a training session. Vitally though, ETH ran all 14 KM with the players. That’s pretty good for a man in his mid-50s, and it clearly showed the players that he was fully invested in the squad. The job he’s done this season has been nothing short of brilliant, and he deserves a full backing from the club’s ownership (whoever that may be) during the transfer window. We need a striker, a second option at goalkeeper, and a ball-carrying midfielder. Time to open the check book!

Glory Glory Man United! Glazers Out!

The Relegation Battle

Coming into today, the title had already been decided and the top-4 was also mostly solidified. Liverpool, Brighton, and Aston Villa ended up in the final European places – with the Scousers and Brighton qualifying for the Europa League while Villa will set up shop in the Europa Conference League next season. There was a lack of drama at the top of the table on the final day, but there was no such lack at the bottom.

Bottom-dwellers Southampton had already been relegated a week or so ago. That meant that there were two other spots open for teams to fall into, and the three teams in danger of doing so were Everton, Leicester City, and Leeds United. Leeds were absolutely walloped by Tottenham 4-1 today, and they were losing almost from the get-go. Their fate was sealed relatively early on. Leicester actually managed to beat West Ham 2-1 though, which meant that they were safe as long as Everton lost to AFC Bournemouth. However, Everton midfielder Abdoulaye Doucouré smashed the Toffees ahead from 20 yards out on 57 minutes, and it would be the goal that saved them from relegation. Everton and manager Sean Dyche escaped this year, but they have serious work to do in the summer to avoid another relegation battle next season. Thrilling stuff at the bottom of the table today, with millions of pounds at stake for each club!

Before the sign off, a quick congratulations to Burnley FC, Sheffield United FC, and Luton Town FC on their promotions to the Premier League! They will replace the relegated Southampton, Leicester, and Leeds. Burnley and Sheffield United have been in the Premier League before, but this will be the first top-flight adventure for Luton Town in their 138 year history! This is a club that re-defines the word “underdog”. I highly recommend a read-up on Luton Town for those interested because they are probably the best story in football right now.

We aren’t quite done with matches this club season just yet. Saturday June 3rd is the FA Cup Final between Manchester United and Manchester City at Wembley. Should be a Derby for the ages! There is also the not-small matter of the Champions League Final between Manchester City and Inter Milan on June 10th in Istanbul, Turkey.

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!

Victory Over Chelsea & The Heroic Harry Gregg

The Premier League returned from its winter break this weekend, and Manchester United were given the challenge of facing Chelsea away at Stamford Bridge in London for a marquee Monday evening (England time) match-up. United have consistently had Chelsea’s number this season, beating them 4-0 on opening day and also knocking them out of the League Cup. I expected us to compete with them especially after 2 weeks off and with new signings Bruno Fernandes and Odion Ighalo having some proper training time with the rest of the squad. That unfortunately didn’t happen for Ighalo due to him being on quarantine for the coronavirus (of all things!), but he was able to train on his own and appears to be fine after leaving China.

The first half of the match was uneventful in terms of goals until the very end, but that does it not mean it lacked drama. United center back and captain Harry Maguire got himself into serious trouble when he went down out of bounds and left his leg in the air. His studs made contact with the unmentionables department of Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi. Maguire was given a yellow and VAR reviewed the incident for a possible red card, but ultimately Maguire was allowed to stay on. It would not be the last incident of grievance for Chelsea concerning VAR on the evening. As a United supporter I will never advocate for our players being sent off unless someone straight up punches somebody, but in this instance had Maguire been sent off I would have been much more upset with his conduct than the referee’s. Can’t leave those studs in the air like that, man.

The Red Devils broke the deadlock near half-time and somewhat against the run of play, thanks to good work from Aaron Wan-Bissaka. He was playing as a right wing back in United’s interesting 3-5-2 formation employed today by manager Ole Gunnar Solskajaer. He got down the right side and pulled off some neat footwork to create space for a cross between him and his marker, Chelsea winger Willian. Anthony Martial had made an incisive run into the box and got his head towards probably the best cross I’ve ever seen from AWB. He’s certainly getting better at it and I am so excited to once again have a United right back who is good both in attack and defense. Martial’s header was quality as well; he put just enough of a deflection on it to ensure it flew into the far corner and beyond the reach of Chelsea keeper Willy Caballero. Martial hadn’t done anything all game until that point, but the moment you sleep on him is the moment he punishes you.

United had all the momentum going into halftime after the goal and came out in the second half playing even better than in the first half. Several half-chances were created but conversely it was Chelsea who ended up having the ball in the back of the net next. They won a corner that was well-taken and after a few deflections the ball fell to center back Kurt Zouma, who struck the ball with some excellent pace and power from the edge of the area and under United keeper David De Gea. I thought Chelsea had their equalizer, but there were protests from United players who were down on the ground. Once again, VAR was called in for a review. Chelsea right back Cesar Azpilicueta crashed into united wing back Brandon Williams as the cross from the corner came in, and a foul was called for the push by referee Anthony Taylor. However, the video also showed that there was contact by United midfielder Fred on Azpilicueta before he crashed into Williams. That further complicated the matter. Should a foul have even been called there by VAR? I’m not sure. A very close call. Yes there was contact, but was it enough to cause Azpilicueta to literally dive into Williams? Whatever the truth is, Chelsea fans were left feeling aggrieved once again with the referee and the VAR referee.

United carried on with their lead and got a second goal from A FREAKING SET PIECE OF ALL THINGS thanks to a lovely ball from a Fernandes corner kick that found Maguire’s massive head on the edge of the 12 yard box. Maguire buried his header (to ad insult to injury for Chelsea fans) and doubled United’s advantage. I suddenly felt much more secure about the result. Yes there was 28+ minutes left but Chelsea hadn’t been able to finish a chance all day, and I felt that United would be able to ride their luck from there on out.

And I was right about them riding their luck! Chelsea substitute striker Olivier Giroud managed to put the ball in the back of the net about 8 minutes later, but a VAR review spotted Giroud’s foot (yes, his foot) was offside when the ball was played to him. I couldn’t believe how close it was, but if the red and blue line graphics are to be believed, Giroud was slightly off just before he scored. The goal was disallowed and Chelsea were once again back down to 2-0. That’s two goals and and a red card that could have been given the other way with different refs on the ground and behind the VAR screen. Chelsea never managed another serious chance, and United substitute Ighalo was unfortunate to not finish a guilt-edged chance in the dying seconds of added time.

Yes United got lucky to a certain extent this match, but we took advantage of our chances when given them and Chelsea did not. For that, we deserve the points. We move up to 7th, normally nothing to be excited about but we are only 1 point of 6th, 2 points of 5th, and 3 points off the Blues themselves in 4th. The race for that 4th spot (and also that 5th spot which could later turn into a Champions League spot) is wide open. Good to see the lads back and in decent form. Fernandes needs to take all corners and free kicks if he is on the pitch from here on out. He’s a different class of footballer and I am so excited to have someone of his quality in the team. Good match for the defense and keeper, especially by Eric Bailly and Luke Shaw. First time “doing the double” (sweeping) Chelsea since 1988!

Next match is against Club Brugge away in Belgium for the first leg of the Europa League 2nd Round on Thursday 2/20/20. Let’s get some vital away goals and set up an easy home fixture at Old Trafford!

*******

Man United FC and all of English football were saddened by the loss of former United and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Harry Gregg, OBE on Sunday. He was not only a top class keeper for United in the late 1950s and 1960s, but he was a hero of a man as well. Gregg was one of the survivors of the Munich Air Disaster, a plane crash that killed 23 of the 44 people aboard in February 1958. The death toll would have been higher if not for Gregg. He emerged from the crash relatively unscathed, and decided to go back into the burning wreckage to save 4 more people, including small children. He was the second to last surviving member of a group of men known as the Busby Babes (after the manager Sir Matt Busby), a group of the most naturally talented English players the nation had ever seen. Only Sir Bobby Charlton remains now as the lone survivor of the plane crash.

Gregg had 247 appearances for United and was crucial in helping to rebuild the club under Sir Matt. He also had a successful coaching career at various clubs after retiring as as a player. He will always be remembered in Manchester and across the UK not only for the caliber of player he was but also the caliber of man that he was.