MANCHESTER, England — There was an FA Cup shock at Old Trafford on Monday night as United somehow managed to hold on to their third-round tie against Aston Villa 1-0. Steven Gerrard’s side had two goals ruled out – one after a lengthy VAR suspension – hitting the crossbar and forcing two impressive saves from David de Gea, but Cancelled by Scott McTominay’s early header.
McTominay was named the contest’s top pick, but there was little competition for the award. United have struggled with the ball and have struggled without it, with Villa looking forward to the two teams meeting again in the Premier League on Saturday. Middlesbrough, waiting in the fourth round, will also lick their lips. “No one would believe it if it was a perfect game. Of course not,” United manager Ralph Rangnick said after the game. “We still have a lot of things to do better, but it was important to keep clean sheets today and we worked together. There are still a lot of things to improve, but it’s easier to do that with a 1-0 win.” Fight together as a team. In the end, it was a nice win. This is our goal, going to the next round. “
Without the injured Cristiano Ronaldo, United’s figures after 65 minutes showed they had just 37 per cent of possession. When they did have the ball, it was wasted. Pass after pass was slipped by its target, finding either a white Villa shirt or a billboard. It was very important for Rangnick to help United take control of the game. It said it all, with 20 minutes left, the German was forced to replace his striker Edinson Cavani with midfielder Donny van de Beek.
When the final whistle blew, Mason Greenwood and Luke Shaw fell to the ground. Victor Lindelof fell. Not surprising considering how much time was spent chasing shadows at night. McTominay and Rafael Varane were among the few to be honoured, and not just because he scored the only goal, as he did against Watt in the third round last season Ford did in the game. In the first minute, he thumped the touchline in front of Gerrard to a roaring applause from Rangnick. In the 8th minute, Fred’s cross headed in and he headed out to block Ramsey’s shot and was quickest when Marcus Rashford grabbed his chance just before half-time. He broke the ball on the edge of the box and passed two Villa defenders.
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