Manchester United have broken the longest unbeaten away record in the Premier League after a late goal from Mason Greenwood secured victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were fortunate to escape with a win as Wolves had numerous chances but were unable to take them. The hosts will be wondering how Romain Saiss didn’t score with David De Gea somehow pulling off a spectacular double save to deny him.
The win takes United’s unbeaten away record to 28 games. It will be a big boost after last week’s disappointing draw against Southampton. For Wolves, they have lost their first three Premier League games under new boss Bruno Lage and are yet to score in the league this season.
Manchester United Set New Premier League Away Record
Mason Greenwood on Target Again for Manchester United
Mason Greenwood has had a fantastic start to the new Premier League season. After scoring in the first two games of the season, he added another with a crucial strike ten minutes from time. It was a brilliant strike from the 19-year-old, even though Wolves keeper Jose Sa should have done better.
Greenwood started as the main striker and was moved to the right-wing after Edinson Cavani came on in the second half. With Cristiano Ronaldo waiting in the wings and the plethora of attacking options at Solskjaer’s disposal, it will be interesting to see where Greenwood fits in.
Arguably, Manchester United’s strongest front three would be Greenwood on the right-hand side, Jadon Sancho on the left-hand side, and Ronaldo up top. However, Paul Pogba has been more effective on the left-hand side this season. Against Wolves, he played deeper and lacked the influence he has this season. It is a headache that Solskjaer would rather have. However, it may take some time to find the right balance from middle to front.
For Greenwood, given his current form, it is surprising that he isn’t in England’s squad for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers. If he keeps this up, Gareth Southgate surely can’t ignore him for much longer.
Lack of Cutting Edge Costs Wolves Again
For the second weekend running, Wolves will be wondering how they have come away with no points and no goals. They dominated against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend but were lacking a cutting edge upfront. It was the same story against Manchester United.
Adama Traore and Francisco Trincão were threatening going forward all afternoon. In particular, in the first half United struggled to cope with the powerful running of Traore. However, one of the biggest criticisms of the 25-year-old is his final ball and once again it was lacking against United. If he can improve on that he would be one of the most dangerous players in Europe.
Wolves manager Bruno Lage will be wondering how Romain Saiss didn’t score midway through the second half. David De Gea managed to not once but twice deny him the opening goal. His second save in particular is an early contender for save of the season.
Once again, they couldn’t find a goal and succumbed to a third successive 1-0 defeat to start the season. Having managed 15 attempts on target in their opening three games, they have yet to score and have now lost their past six Premier League matches.
That will be a big concern for Bruno Lage. Before the match against Manchester United, Wolves announced the signing of striker Hwang Hee-chan from RB Leipzig on a season-long loan deal with an option to buy. The Wolves support will be hoping he will be the answer to their goal-scoring problems.
Solid Debut for Raphael Varane
Raphael Varane made his highly anticipated debut for Manchester United at Molineux and put in a solid performance.
Positionally, he was faultless and forced Wolves’ attackers to either revert to the channels or take pot shots from distance. Striker Raul Jimenez was fairly quiet as both Varane and Harry Maguire marshalled him well.
Varane also made an important block to deny Francisco Trincão. He made some crucial interventions late on as United hung on to secure the victory.
There will no doubt be more to come from the French World Cup winner and he will be happy to begin his United career with a clean sheet. If the Old Trafford side are to be title contenders, the partnership between Maguire and Varane will be pivotal.
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