Manchester United turned and won against Newcastle
It was a great “Boxing Day” for Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjær, who beat Newcastle 4-1. Regardless, it was Steve Bruce’s men who made a real dent in the Old Trafford crowd.
Namely, Matty Longstaff did as he did in the opposite settlement, sending Newcastle into the lead in the first half. Shortly after, United’s attack trio woke up seriously.
First, Anthony Martial knocked in the equalizer, before 18-year-old Mason Greenwood knocked in 2-1. United’s insane first half was crowned by a header from Marcus Rashford. In the second half, Martial set the final score to 4-1.
Scott McTominay had to leave already during the break and should have left Old Trafford on crutches. After the end of the game, Solskjær confirmed that it can be serious for the player.
– He has taken the crucifix on his knee, I think. He has the biggest heart of them all, he holds- A lump of gold!
The one that will be talked about in the future anyway is Mason Greenwood. The 18-year-old’s scoring is the third in the English top division, prompting several experts and journalists to highlight the superlatives.
“If there is nothing to do, it is to offer that boy the chance,” TV 2 commentator Simen Stamsø Møller praised as Greenwood celebrated his scoring. During the break, Erik Thorstvedt was clear on the potential of the young boy:
– You know what? He is a golden chunk of a football player, Thorstvedt said, to summarize the talent of the young striker.
Among those who responded to social media was English legend Gary Lineker:
Excellent first half from @ManUtd and great to see yet another exciting young English talent emerging in Mason Greenwood. ??
— Gary Lineker (@GaryLineker) December 26, 2019
– The fantastic first run of United, and fantastic to see another young English talent emerge in Mason Greenwood, Lineker writes on Twitter.
Manchester United legend Gary Neville was also impressed by what he saw:
– You’re beautiful, Mason Greenwood, Neville writes on Twitter.
You beauty @_MasonGreenwood ❤️
— Gary Neville (@GNev2) December 26, 2019
Vålerenga’s chief scout and Viasport expert Lars Tjærnås were also very impressed with what he saw from United’s 18-year-old.
– Casting Greenwood’s left leg may end up in a glass stand at Old Trafford when he posts, Tjærnås writes on Twitter.
Scott McTominay went off at half-time and he’s just left the stadium on crutches. Doesn’t look good.
— Rob Dawson (@RobDawsonESPN) December 26, 2019
Swedish journalist Frida Fagerlund in Aftonbladet also asked where United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjær had been if it wasn’t for the eight scores Greenwood has recorded for this season:
– Where had Solskjærs been without Greenwood, Fagerlund asks rhetorically on Twitter, just after the score for the 18-year-old?
The victory for Manchester United means they jump up one spot on the Premier League table. Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s crew is number seven in the English top division after half-time play.
For Newcastle, Thursday’s loss means they fall one place down and are now number ten in the Premier League. Steve Bruce’s crew stand by 25 points in total after the first 19 games.
– We had twenty grueling minutes before the break, and just after the break, we had too many mistakes. When you come here, you can’t give Manchester United gift packages. I know it’s Christmas, but we gave away more goals in half an hour than we’ve done in the last three months, “Newcastle coach Steve Bruce told Amazon after the match.
For United’s sake, whatever the cause, Scott McTominay left the stadium in crutches:
Teenager’s evening
Already after 15 seconds, Scott McTominay managed to incur a yellow card, which set the standard for a physical and level match at Old Trafford between United and Newcastle.
Manchester United turned and won against Newcastle
It was Newcastle who got the first chance anyway. After 16 minutes, Joelinton passed through to Dwight Gayle, who was left alone with David de Gea. His shot whistled over.
Only a minute later, Newcastle would come again, and again it was Brazilian Joelinton who was the headmaster. He left the ball to Matty Longstaff, who hammered in the lead. The 19-year-old also scored the goal when Newcastle beat United earlier this season.
United struggled to find an equalizer, and among others, Fred tested the shotgun from a distance just after Longstaff’s goal. Martin Dubravka seemed very patent between the Newcastle rods.
He could do little in the 24th minute when Andreas Pereira dropped the ball to Anthony Martial. The Frenchman hammered, taking advantage of a Dubravka at half-distance. That made it 1-1.
United had really got blood on their teeth, and Marcus Rashford and Pereira tested the shotgun from a distance after the equalization. Both knocked the ball aside for the Newcastle goal.
One who had fine-tuned the sight was Mason Greenwood. Newcastle lost the ball far in their own half in the 36th minute, and the 18-year-old hammered. After taking a turn in a Newcastle player, the ball narrowed into the crossbar and ended up in the netmasks behind a knocked-out Dubravka.
It should only get better and better for the boys of Solskær. Just before the break Aaron Wan-Bissaka came to the post, and inside the box, Marcus Rashford was waiting. He scored highest in the airspace, tying in United’s third score.
United and Solskærs could smile wide after the first 45 minutes at Old Trafford. It was Manchester United who led 3-1 over Newcastle after the first round.
PogBACK
Before the second round kicked off, Solskjær chose to switch to Paul Pogba. French superstar replaced Scott McTominay, who got a yellow card after 15 seconds of the settlement.
With 50 minutes played, Old Trafford of France fell dramatically just outside the penalty area. The ball whistled just outside Dubravka’s post.
However, it would be more of a net for United as Martial snapped up a miserable setback by Sean Longstaff. Alone with keeper Dubravka, he tilted the ball elegantly in goal and punctured the match for United.
Martial was properly chopped and chased the hat trick. With 61 minutes played, the visitors could have scored the tying goal after Dubravka came through the middle, but his kick went wide. Unfortunately for the former Monaco player, the ball rushed outside.
Throughout the game, Solskær decided to rest a few of its most important players. Both Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial were therefore off the field. They were replaced by Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata.
Sean Longstaff tried to rectify some of the impression the neighborhood had before when he first swallowed a hatch on Fred, and then hammered in from a distance. The ball whistled well over De Gea’s crossbar.
Throughout the game, it became more and more obvious that United had good control, thus slowing the pace of the ball. As a result, they did not get the greatest goal chances towards the end.
Anyway, Harry Maguire would have a finger in the game for United’s goal statistics and hammered in from a distance. Only one crazy save from Dubravka stopped the United captain from signing on the scoring list.
In the end it was a great evening for Ole Gunnar Solskjær and his team. Manchester United beat Newcastle 4-1 on “Boxing Day”.
