Marcus Rashford came off the bench to score a late winner in Manchester United’s 1-0 victory at Wolves on Saturday
Date/Time : 31 December, 13:30 CET
Referee: Robert Jones
Marcus Rashford was left on the bench for Manchester United’s Premier League trip to Wolves and scored the only goal of the game.
The striker, who was dropped by manager Erik ten Hag for disciplinary reasons, scored his 11th goal of the season to lift United into the Premier League’s top four with a 1-0 win.
Alejandro Garnacho had already missed a golden chance, while David De Gea saved a Ruben Neves free-kick at the other end.
United have lost just one of their last 15 games since the 6-3 derby against Manchester City in October, with ten scraps leaving their mark on the pitch and the pitch at Old Trafford.
Another big call proved rewarding as the manager made his point without spoiling United’s form.
They were up against a motivated Wolves side looking to break out of the relegation zone for the first time in two months, but 2023 saw them finish in the top three.
There remains reason for optimism as the hosts are ready to fight, but January will be crucial to Julen Lopetegui’s autumn title hopes.
United threatened early on and Casemiro’s header caught Matheus Nunes and flew over, but Wolves soon decided to enjoy the period without worrying De Gea.
But despite a solid start, the hosts needed José Sá to come to their rescue as he saved Semedo from Garnacho after a stingy back-pass from Nelson.
It was a warning and United worked the ball harder, although Wolves were dangerous on the break and De Gea curled in Diego Costa’s soft shot after a Nunes break.
The confidence in the visitors was clear, but they found the Wolves team had discovered theirs after their last – and crucial – Boxing Day win at Everton.
Nathan Collins’ superb strike as Antony Martial attempted to attack underlined the hosts’ determination not to lose their growing momentum and United were not to have it easy.
However, if Wolves are to survive this season, they simply need to score more and concede just 10 goals.
The signing of Matheus Cunha, on loan from Atletico Madrid, will undoubtedly help, but they rarely tried to beat De Gea in the first half.
United had the best of the opening moments though and continued to do so when Anthony fired straight past Sa eight minutes before the break.
The Ten Hag clearly felt they had been wasted and recalled Rashford from his brief exile at Garnachos for the restart, with Adama replacing Traore Costa for the hosts.
Traoré, as usual, provided the urgency, but it was Neves who came closest for Wolves in the 57th minute when his superb free-kick was blocked by De Gea.
Wolves caused United defensive problems in the closing stages and substitute Raul Jimenez almost equalized in added time, but De Gea pulled off a brilliant save from close range to ensure the Red Devils took all three points.
However, it was fitting that Rashford had the decisive say in 14 minutes.
He turned left, cut inside and exchanged passes with Bruno Fernandes. There was still work to do, but the striker got past Jonny and Collins to beat Sa.
Rashford thought he was about to have a second but the shot was disallowed as the striker touched the ball.
The hosts pushed for an equalizer in extra time and De Gea had to be alert to stop Raul Jimenez’s header.
Ending 2022 on a high note, Man United now target their first game of the new year at home to Bournemouth on January 3, while Wolves travel to Aston Villa for their next game a day later.
Lineups:
Wolverhampton (4-2-3-1):
Sa, Semedo (Jonny 65), Collins, Kilman, Bueno (Toti 73), Neves, Nunes, Moutinho (Ait-Nouri 72), Hwang, Podence (Jimenez 80), Costa (A. Traore 46)
Unused subs: Sarkic, B. Traore, Hodge, Guedes
Man Utd (4-2-3-1):
De Gea, Wan-Bissaka, Varane, Shaw, Malacia, Casemiro, Eriksen (Fred 60), Fernandes (Maguire 90), Antony (Elanga 90), Garnacho (Rashford 46), Martial (Van De Beek 81)
Unused subs: Heaton, Lindelof, Williams, Mainoo
Scorers :
Bookings:
Man of the Match : David De Gea (Man. Utd)
Match Stats:
