6 hours ago
9
As the second half began, a banner appeared in the Stretford End that read: “MUFC proudly colonised by immigrants.” If this was a riposte to Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s assertion that these shores have been overrun by those from overseas (for which the co-owner half-heartedly apologised), Manchester United needed their own reply to a listless opening period that left them trailing to Maxence Lacroix’s early header.
Eleven minutes after the restart, they did. First came Lacroix’s sending-off, issued by Chris Kavanagh after a pitchside monitor review for yanking over Matheus Cunha. The contact started before the 18-yard line but it continued into the penalty area, so the referee followed up awarding a spot-kick by showing his red card. Fernandes calmly beat Dean Henderson to the left of the Crystal Palace No 1, who guessed wrong.
This was all part of a far brighter United mode after what had surely been some curt words from Michael Carrick at the break, the interim manager needing to wake his side from its stupor. Already, Benjamin Sesko had had a shot blocked by Jaydee Canvot.
When Fernandes and Sesko intervened next, United went ahead. A weak Palace clearance dropped on to Fernandes’s toes, and he controlled the ball and crossed from the right. Sesko, showing far more hunger than Canvot, beat the defender to a header that powered beyond Henderson’s left hand, and so the Slovene had a ninth goal in United colours, with seven of these in his last eight appearances.
United had become a red swarm. The moribund first 45 minutes were a mystery that might baffle Miss Marple. Kobbie Mainoo popped up on the left and dinked the ball over, and a corner was claimed on the other side. When this broke, Bryan Mbeumo crossed and Casemiro blazed a volley Henderson did well to repel.
Sesko was serenaded by the Old Trafford faithful when he was replaced by Amad Diallo in the 72nd minute, as Mbeumo took his slot in central attack. From then on it was a canter home to the final whistle and United moved up to third – on goal difference – after accruing 19 from a possible 21 points under Carrick.
They are 10 behind Arsenal with 10 matches left. Football may be a quaint old game but any hopes of a 21st title are, surely, a pipe dream, yet after last term’s dire 15th-place finish the trajectory is certainly skywards, for which the interim manager takes serious credit.
Palace had required a mere four minutes to breach their hosts. Brennan Johnson floated a corner in from the left, Leny Yoro lost Lacroix and he rose and headed across a melee to beat Senne Lammens via the goalkeeper’s right post, the Belgian failing to even dive.
This was the earliest United have conceded under Carrick – or at all this season (by 25 minutes) – so we would see a new type of test for his side. It dallied with becoming sterner when Daniel Muñoz raided along the right and fed Ismaïla Sarr, and his fierce shot was parried by Lammens.
This was an indication of a ploy from Oliver Glasner to get at United along their flanks, where Cunha and Mbeumo needed to help their full-backs, Luke Shaw and Diogo Dalot. The Brazilian and Cameroonian operated in their usual wide positions (left and right) due to a rejig of Carrick’s frontline caused by Sesko’s stellar form forcing him into the XI – for Diallo – at No 9.
Palace were on a run of a solitary loss in six games in all competitions, winning their last two since Glasner’s declaration that he was “not good enough” for the role. Perhaps reverse psychology was in play because, at this stage, the Austrian’s men bested their opponents.
After 23 minutes Shaw was forced off with an apparent foot injury, so Noussair Mazraoui replaced the left-back: further disruption to a United who were a mishmash of errant passes, sluggish challenges and poor imagination, unable to pierce the Eagles, for whom Henderson’s cruised between their posts.
Yet when Mbeumo dropped in a corner from the right Harry Maguire’s header was goal-bound before it hit Sarr and moments later Sesko was thwarted by a Palace boot when unloading: encouragement for United.
More followed in forays that featured Mazraoui’s effort being inadvertently blocked by Cunha, Sesko heading a Fernandes cross into Henderson’s gloves, and a Fernandes ball in demanding Sesko dart to the near post.
The home captain started to run the show. Henderson tipped over his dipping free-kick and the next Fernandes took landed on Casemiro’s head, the Brazilian spurning the chance from close range.
United’s second-half turnaround ensued. It closed with a sweet Diallo swivel-and-shot that had Henderson flying right to steer behind, and Joshua Zirkzee – on for Mbeumo – and Mainoo going close, further emphasising how dominant Carrick’s men became.
