Manchester United survived a scare against League 2 Newport County on Sunday afternoon, earning a fifth round away tie at either Bristol City or Nottingham Forest.
It was far from plain sailing from the Reds, who let a 2-goal lead slip before eventually overcoming their plucky Welsh opponents.
Erik Ten Hag was hesitant to criticise the team or performance, but did lament some of the defending. He was also tight-lipped on Marcus Rashford’s situation.
“For the first 35 minutes we were very dominant, we didn’t give them any chance and should have been 3,4,5 nil up. Then they score a goal out of nothing…and then for the second goal we have to be critical, poor defending from the cross and then it’s 2-2. But then you see how resilient we are, we stayed calm and got back to our game. We scored the third goal and fourth so, job done.
[Marcus Rashford] reported ill, and it’s an internal matter. I will deal with it.
Erik Ten Hag after the game
Another unconvincing win
Similar to the Wigan game in the fourth round, it’s ‘job done’ for United, but with a result that doesn’t really instil much confidence 3in the fanbase. United are 3 leagues higher than Newport County, but at one point the game was very competitive, with Newport looking like they might even edge into the lead.
Thankfully, United’s superior quality showed, but this cup tie was much more difficult than it should have been.
Quick out the blocks
United got off to a flying start yesterday, with Bruno Fernandes’ and then Kobbie Mainoo’s composed finishes giving them a 2-0 lead within 13 minutes. Garnacho hit the woodwork and it was starting to look like a possible rout was on the cards.
But against the run of play, Newport’s Bryan Morris fired a screamer past debutant Bayindir in the United goal – albeit with the help of a deflection – and the goal really fired up the Welsh side and their raucous fans. Newport caught United napping 2 minutes after half-time s Will Evans levelled, thanks to some uncharacteristically poor defending by Raphael Varane from a low cross.
To highlight just how unexpected and poor this was – two years ago Will Evans was only part-time; juggling his football career with dairy farming! Worrying stuff for the Reds’ leaky defence.
Reds Regain composure to get over the line
United looked stunned after the equaliser, and mistakes started to creep in. It would be a stretch to say Newport were on top, but we were certainly rattled and the teams looked fairly well-matched for a good 15-20 minutes.
On 68 minutes, the largely ineffective Antony restored United’s lead, reacting quickly to Luke Shaw’s parried effort to slot home with his right foot.
Rasmus Hojlund, with his first shot of the game, put some gloss on the score with a well-taken 94th-minute strike, reacting first to a shot blocked by the Newport goalkeeper. The Dane celebrated with great passion on what must have been a frustrating night for him. Yet again, he received precious little service from wingers Garnacho and Antony.
Player ratings and MOTM
Bayindir – 6. Had a decent enough debut and neither goal was his fault. Handling looked largely solid.
Dalot – 6. Didn’t show much going forward but fought for the cause and battled hard to get United over the line.
Varane – 5. Started off well but poor against Evans for the equaliser.
Martinez – 7. Excellent forward passing range and as always, commanding in defence.
Shaw – 6. A good performance in his first start for over a month. Set up the first goal inadvertently for Antony.
Casemiro – 5. Started well but looked like a man making his first start for 3 months and picked up a needless booking for a reckless tackle.
Mainoo – 7. Brought control and composure to the midfield and scored his first United goal with an assured finish.
Fernandes – 7.5 & MOTM. Looked to be our most dangerous and creative player, and scored an excellent opener.
Antony – 5. Despite an assist and a goal, looked largely ineffective and still seems too one-footed. Wasteful when in good positions.
Hojlund – 6. A peripheral figure for large parts but again lacked service. Made the game safe with a poacher’s finish in injury time and celebrated it like he cares.
Garnacho – 6. Hit the bar, looked a constant threat but decision-making still looks awry at time. Hopefully this will develop with time.
Subs:
McTominay – N/A. Came on for Casemiro on 81 minutes, gave United more energy in attack.
Kambwala – N/A. Came on on 82 minutes for Luke Shaw and looked composed.
Forson, Maguire, Evans – N/A. Came on late for Antony, Martinez and Varane respectively.
MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS
United didn’t really do much to shift the needle in terms of performances yesterday, and big questions still remain.
Marcus Rashford was with ‘illness’, but as you probably know, that illness came the day after a night out in Belfast and Erik Ten Hag told reporters he would ‘deal with it’. There is talk of a huge fine, to the tune of £650,000 or two weeks’ wages, in some publications.
United now have two tricky league games in four days: Wolves away and West Ham at home, and then are away to Villa – another top 4 contender – a week later.
Hopefully, the return of the influential Martinez, Casemiro and Luke Shaw help to galvanise the Reds, and we can start to put in performances like the ones that brought us success last season.
