Every loser wins
For the second time in a week, United found that defeat came with a silver lining
FIVE ASIDES Premier League: United 1, Leicester 2
This was almost the perfect defeat. Forget that it gave City the title – that was inevitable, and United did well to drag it out this long. United have two targets left in the league, neither of which involves City. The first is to become only the fourth side in English top-flight history to go through a whole league season without losing away from home, so it was a blessing that the Aston Villa and Leicester games were this way round. The second is to stop Liverpool qualifying for the Champions League, and not just out of spite. If Liverpool finish outside the top four it will impact their ability to buy, and keep, the best players. United’s first XI will be fresh to face Liverpool on Thursday and, while it would have been nice for the reserves to get a result, Leicester’s victory has an upside: they are now nine points clear of Liverpool. If United win tomorrow night, Liverpool will need snookers.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s selection was a two-fingered salute to the FA. He made 10 changes and picked the kind of side we normally see against Luton rather than Leicester. Six months ago, Solskjaer would probably have swerved a potential confrontation with Jurgen Klopp, who will surely have plenty to say on the subject before and after tomorrow’s game. But now, with United 13 points ahead of Liverpool, he feels comfortable looking down on them. The selection was that of a man who has never felt more secure in his job. And yes, Ole, it is what Fergie would have done.
‘Greenwood might well be
United’s best two-footed
finisher since Bobby Charlton’
United’s best two-footed
finisher since Bobby Charlton’
A recurring theme of Mason Greenwood’s goals is a debate over whether the goalkeeper could have done better: Emi Martinez on Sunday, Kasper Schmeichel last night. This is no coincidence. Greenwood can shoot with either foot to any of the four corners of the goal, and that variety scrambles goalkeepers’ brains. The lack of backlift makes him even more dangerous. Keepers know it’s coming but they don’t know when, where or how. Schmeichel was so preoccupied with his near post that he was unable to make a split-second adjustment when Greenwood went for the other side: if it was an error, it certainly wasn’t unforced. Greenwood will do this to dozens of keepers in the next 10 years. He may well be United’s best two-footed finisher since Bobby Charlton.
None of the second XI gave Solskjaer much of a headache as he ponders the Europa League final. Donny van de Beek worked hard in the McFred zone, but it’s not his natural habitat and he is still painfully short of confidence. Amad, bright and busy on the right wing, got an assist for Greenwood’s goal without quite looking ready for this level. The debutant Anthony Elanga, on the left, had a quiet game, though that wasn’t entirely his fault – on a few occasions he made excellent runs without receiving the ball. Apart from Greenwood, the best players were Nemanja Matic, Alex Telles, who was at his most elegant, and Axel Tuanzebe. While Tuanzebe made a couple of wishy-washy clearances that almost put United in trouble, he also pulled off a number of important interceptions and blocks. If Harry Maguire doesn’t make the final, as seems likely, Tuanzebe vs Eric Bailly will be one of the two dilemmas facing Solskjaer.
The other will be on the right wing. It would have been unthinkable two months ago, but on current form it’s hard to justify Marcus Rashford starting in Gdansk. A season of playing through injury and taking on the government has taken its toll, and he produced a hapless cameo here. Rashford had only been on the field for a few seconds when his negligent marking allowed Caglar Soyuncu to head the winner, an error he highlighted further by trying to blame somebody else. At the other end he missed a decent headed chance. With Greenwood and Edinson Cavani in blistering form, and Paul Pogba at his happiest on the left, Rashford is heading for a role Solskjaer knows all about in European finals: the overqualified sub.