Manchester United hit back in stoppage time to secure victory over Rangers in Thursday night’s Europa League clash at Old Trafford.
Bruno Fernandes kept his cool in the box in the 92nd minute to put Ruben Amorim’s side back in front after Cyriel Dessers had equalized moments earlier for Rangers.
Before that, a comical own goal from Rangers goalkeeper Jack Butland, who spent the first six months of 2023 on loan with the Red Devils, looked set to be enough to decide the contest.
How the match unfolded
The first big chance went to Rangers ten minutes later. United contributed by losing the ball in their own half, Toby Collyer lost the ball in midfield after receiving a pass under pressure, resulting in Nicolas Raskin breaking through on goal. Altay Bayindir flew out, and Raskin’s slip at a critical moment led to a goal by the United goalkeeper.
Bayindir was called into action again soon after, parrying international team-mate Ridvan Yilmaz’s volley.
United dominated possession without much notice, until midway through the first half when Alejandro Garnacho’s shot at goal was deflected over the bar off the head of Raskin. Matthijs de Ligt headed in the resulting corner, but Leny Yor’s slight foul ruled it out.
A good team move in the final stages before half-time allowed Amado Diallo to see the goal, which came from a measured pass from Bruno Fernandes. Butland came out well for the choke. He also got a strong hand in Lisandro Martinez’s powerful attack, either side of Hamza Igamane’s heavily deflected shot which had a misplaced Bayindir stretching across goal to push away.
Within minutes of the start of the second half, Igamane was credited with an excellent save in his penalty area when he headed a swinging corner almost right under the crossbar.
United’s early pressure continued and Fernandes’ shot on goal was saved in agony by Robin Propper, with a corner following Butland’s nightmare moment. The former England international never fully took flight and was under the ball as he attempted to clear, inadvertently sending it backwards into the goal.
After the hour, Propper was the reason Garnacho didn’t make it 2-0 with a smart shot across goal after Amad cut the ball, heading the ball off the line. There was also an opportunity for Harry Maguire, who narrowly missed the goal with a header. Butland redeemed himself to some extent with a reflex save that deflected Manuel Ugarte’s header and parried Garnach.
Rangers struggled to create in the second leg as United’s superior depth showed, but there were warning signs before the equaliser, first when Jefte angled a shot from outside the box straight at Bayindir and later Dessers hit the post with a smart lift past the United No.1. His goal in the 88th minute was well received, outsmarting Maguire, controlling the release of the ball and firing hard and low into the far bottom corner.
But the action was not over. United pushed back and Martinez advanced from the back to send an inviting cross into the box into the path of Fernandes, who met him on the volley to push the ball through Butland’s legs to seal the win.
See the ratings of the Manchester United and Rangers players from the match here.
After a painful defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend, Ruben Amorim said he wanted the players to recapture the feeling they had when they came back with a goal twice to secure a draw against Liverpool earlier this month.
At the weekend, United played quite well in the first half but let their heads drop when Brighton took the lead again just after the break. A lack of resilience has been a criticism leveled at the team for several years and conceding Rangers’ late equalizer in this game could have been the killer blow in other circumstances.
But here the players rallied, climbed to the end of the field and scored again for the victory.
The first half was a largely even contest, with Rangers having good value for the equalizer at the interval, doing well to mostly keep United at bay and creating chances of their own.
But neither midfielder Connor Barron nor centre-back Leon Balogun, who were both key to those efforts in the first 45 minutes, returned to the field. By the hour mark, Vaclav Cerny was also forced off injured, leaving Philippe Clement to send on the inexperienced youngsters in their stead.
The equalizer was a sudden, long drive and moment of individual skill by Cyriel Dessers. Rangers hadn’t been in a game by that stage for some time.
Andre Onana was usually favored in the Europa League this season, and this season he was among the substitutes. Altay Bayindir, the goalkeeper of the domestic cup, started instead.
It was not lost on the fans that Onana was guilty of a costly error against Brighton just days earlier, having come under scrutiny in recent weeks after the errors that characterized his early United career appeared to have returned to his game.
Amorim played down the goalkeeping change, describing it before the game as a “normal rotation” and explaining the importance of keeping Bayindir fresh and sharp with significant playing time, wanting to dismiss the idea of repercussions for Onana.
Bayindir played a good game overall, they were beaten by Dessers, but they saved other key things.
Alejandro Garnach’s presence in the starting line-up was a bit of a surprise given his recent absence of starts and speculation surrounding his uncertain future.
Amorim would not have selected the winger if there was even a hint of doubt that he was not up to the task, and the faith was repaid.
Garnacho didn’t score or assist but was still a consistent threat and outlet in attack, logging more dribbles than anyone else on the pitch, taking five shots and nine touches of the ball inside the Rangers penalty area.
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