It’s been a long period of 33 weeks that Manchester United last had an away victory. Suddenly, things are turning in their favour and they have made it two in the space of four days, the latest being a 1-3 win over Norwich at Carrow Road. Yesterday’s performance by United was a dominant one.
The Red Devils started on a very positive note with Scott Mctominay scoring the 2000th goal for the club in the Premier League. Marcus Rashford made it 2-0 for United in the 1st half and Anthony Martial made it 3-0 before Onel Hernandez pulled one back for the hosts. Despite missing two penalties, it was a comfortable victory for the away side. Ole Gunnar Solksjaer had tweaked his formation to his preferred 4-2-3-1 and it worked in favour as Rashford, James and Martial worked upfront in beautiful coordination and combination.
Here are the talking points from the game between Manchester United and Norwich-
Solksjaer keeping his hopes on Martial
Ole Gunnar Solksjaer wants to see the Frenchman at the centre forward position and took a dig at his predecessors in van Gaal and Mourinho for playing the striker out on the wings. Him moving centrally has reaped instant benefits as the striker has found the art of scoring goals again.“Anthony got put out on the wing by other managers and I understand why because he is so quick. But, for me, he is a proper No.9. He needs to be connected to the game.”
Penalty problems continue for Manchester United
Manchester United have a serious problem of converting penalties these days. The club has missed 4 out of possible 6 penalty chances this season with Rashford(2), Martial and Paul Pogba all involved in these misses. Though the result was unaffected last night despite a couple of misses, it has costed them earlier this season when a win against Wolves ended in a draw and a draw against Palace ended up in a loss.
Max Aarons continues to impress
Norwich is struggling to keep up with the strength of the Premier League. However, England U-21 international Max Aarons is having a brilliant season on a personal note. He has to learn a lot in defensive areas still and is quite naive in his positioning. Despite that, offensively he’s brilliant going forward and created two brilliant chances at the beginning of both halves running down the right and finding teammates, unfortunately, moves did not find the back of the net.
Daniel James and Scott McTominay stepping up for Manchester United
Ole Gunnar Solksjaer has a lot of young players to deal with at Old Trafford. Despite that, Daniel James and Scott McTominay are proving week-in and week-out that they are cut out for the job. They are indeed among the better performers Manchester United have had in their ranks this season.
McTominay put in a wonderful display against Norwich. He was protecting the defence and linking the attack from the heart of the midfield. Part of his added to the cause, barring scoring the opener for United. Daniel James is adapting to the right-wing. He’s a big threat to the opposition fullback and centre backs. He has that breathtaking pace that steers him through multiple yards on the counters.
