Martinez woe as Utd slip up
Man Utd suffered a damaging loss on Monday as they lost to bitter rivals Leeds. Already two down at half-time, their job was made worse by the dismissal of Lisandro Martinez. Not even a late rally after a Casemiro goal could prevent the defeat.
Leeds, on the other hand, were ecstatic. They surged into a strong position via a double from Noah Oakafor and held on despite late pressure. It moves them six points clear of Tottenham in the relegation area.
Michael Carrick made four changes from the side who drew at Bournemouth 24 days ago. Harry Maguire was missing due to his sending off in that game, Diogo Dalot had a recent illness and Kobbie Mainoo picked up a knock. Bryan Mbeumo dropped to the bench. In came Noussair Mazraoui, Lisandro Martinez, Manuel Ugarte, and Benjamin Sesko.
Daniel Farke also made four alterations from their FA Cup game with West Ham. Karl Darlow, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Brenden Aaronson, and Gabriel Gudmundsson all returned to the side. Lucas Perri dropped to the bench whilst Joe Rondon, Anton Stach, and Lucas Nmecha missed out completely.
The home side were looking to close in on Champions League qualification, but the strugglers had different plans. Senne Lammens had already pulled off an excellent save when the away side went ahead after five minutes. Jayden Bogle floated a cross into the area to Dominic Calvert-Lewin. He knocked the ball down to Noah Okafor to finish smartly from a few yards out. Carrick was furious as it appeared the striker had leant in on Leny Yoro in winning the header.
The reds attempted to respond and Karl Darlow was forced into his first real save to deny Amad Diallo before Benjamin Sesko stumbled when in a promising position. The Whites were still posing a threat at the other end. Lisandro Martinez was forced to produce a block to deny Calvert-Lewin.
They were not to wait long for a second though. It was pin-ball in our penalty area that was not cleared effectively. It came to the feet of Okafor who smashed it home past Lammens via a deflection off Yoro.
The fans were groaning in response to the slow movement, sloppy passing and lack of drive on show. It almost got worse before the break. Lammens and Yoro got into a mess to allow Ao Tanaka clear on goal. Martinez got back just in time to clear it off the line.
Utd needed to respond quickly after the break. Sesko almost provided it within a few minutes. He wriggled clear of two defenders before Darlow came out to block him. It looped over the keeper and needed James Justin to rescue him with a clearance.
The situation got even worse on 55 minutes though. Martinez lost a header in a challenge with Calvert-Lewin. He responded by pulling the strikers hair. On a VAR viewing, the Argentinian received a straight red card. Again, Carrick was seething on the touchline.
The home side were given a lifeline with twenty minutes to go. Bruno Fernandes picked up a loose ball after a corner was only half-cleared. He floated it to the back post for Casemiro to nod home from a few yards.
Calvert-Lewin might have secured the win with just over ten minutes left. His header lacked any kind of power though. It was a rare venture into the opposition half for the visitors at that point. Man Utd were piling on the pressure as the game was approaching the end.
They almost landed an equaliser in a frantic spell with five minutes to go. Sesko’s header from a Bryan Mbeumo cross forced Darlow into another save. From the resulting corner, Casemiro rose highest again but Calvert-Lewin was on hand to head it off the line. The resulting scramble produced nothing.
That would be as good as it got despite seven minutes injury time. The travelling support were celebrating their first league win at Old Trafford since 1981. Their trophy will be unveiled at the end of the season. They will look to pull further clear when facing Wolves at home on Saturday. We face into a huge game at Stamford Bridge that evening at 20.00.
Manchester United: Senne Lammens, Noussair Mazraoui (Diogo Dalot 70), Lisandro Martinez, Leny Yoro, Luke Shaw, Carlos Casemiro, Manuel Ugarte, Amad Diallo (Bryan Mbeumo 70), Bruno Fernandes, Matheus Cunha, Benjamin Sesko. Bryan Mbeumo.
Subs not used: Altay Bayinder, Mason Mount, Joshua Zirkzee, Tyrell Malacia, Ayden Heaven, Jack Fletcher, Shea Lacey.
Booked: Matheus Cunha (18), Luke Shaw (49), Bruno Fernandes (64)
Sent off: Lisandro Martinez (49)
Leeds United: Karl Darlow, James Justin, Jaka Bijol, Pascal Struijk, Jayden Bogle, Ethan Ampadu, Ao Tanaka (Ilia Gruev 74), Gabriel Gudmundsson, Brenden Aaronson (Sean Longstaff 88), Noah Okafor (Wilfred Gnonto 74), Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Subs not used: Lucas Perri, Sebastiaan Bornauw, Facundo Bounanotte, Sam Byram, , Joel Piroe, Lukas Nmecha.
Booked: James Justin (39), Ethan Ampadu (86)
Sent off: None
Referee: Paul Tierney
Attendance: 74,018
Simply Red Man of the Match: Dominic Calvert-Lewin
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