A late goal by Alejandro Garnacho ended Manchester United's game for good. 2022-2023 season recap
Whatever happens to the Manchester United property saga in the coming days and weeks, the importance of finishing in the top four this season cannot be overemphasized.
Given that this As the team still has major surgery ahead of them, Erik ten Hag has a pretty tough job trying to figure out where best to put his limited funds in the summer without fearing his transfer budget will be hit hard by the denial of vital Champions League revenue. .
It was therefore a decisive victory on a wider scale and means that United can guarantee a place in the top four with two more wins, even if Liverpool win all the remaining three match.
After back-to-back defeats to Brighton and West Ham, the job was harder than it should have been, there was little margin for error against Wolves, but for all the enjoyment Ten Haeg would have from the result, it was also a game that only highlighted the urgent need for reinforcements for the attack.
There are holes in this team that need to be plugged, but the absence of a top-class centre-forward is felt every week, and the fact that it took 18 years for an 18-year-old striker to show more experienced players what composure in front of goal looks like tells its own story here. history.
Alejandro Garnacho was the toughest man in the stadium when Bruno Fernandes released the ball in the fourth minute of stoppage time, and he never missed, landing a nimble shot from the post and past the impressive Wolves goaltender Dan Bentley .
United fans were clamoring for the Argentine long before he was finally kicked out with eight minutes left, and it wasn't hard to see why.
Contrast with Anthony, Jadon Sancho and fellow substitute Vought Weghorst, who missed the opportunity to kill the poor Wolves long before Garnacho put beyond any doubt the result was striking.
«United never gets ahead.» the easy way is the hard way,” said Ten Hag. “We again made their goalkeeper man of the match. It was like that in the match against Brighton, it was like that today, it was like that in other games. We have to be more reasonable and make it easier because the second goal closes the game. We definitely need to improve this fact.”
As much as United fans dream of the Glazers leaving – the prospect of the Americans remaining, even as minority shareholders, will not please many – so Ten Hag is appealing to a striker of Harry Kane's stature. Wolves weren't good enough to penalize United for chronic wastefulness, but other teams have been penalized this season and while the next few weeks are devoted to breaking the line, serious progress next season will be much harder to come by next season. if Ten Hag's team stays. so wasteful.
Bruno Fernandes has created nearly as many 'big chances' this season as Kevin De Bruyne, but has eight fewer assists than the Manchester City midfielder, reflecting the ruthlessness of Premier leaders -league compared to United.
Having managed just three goals in his last six games, it didn't help that top scorer Marcus Rashford missed a leg injury. In the end, United went through what Ten Hag called a «test of courage» without an England striker, but it should have been much more comfortable than it actually was.
Anthony Martial's goal here was only fifth in the league this season — an answer from an Anthony pass — and after eight seasons at Old Trafford, no one at the club needs to say he's not the answer. With Anthony you would think he could play all day and not score.
Anthony Martial scored first in a game that unlikely to score to have many goals. Credit: PA/Tim Goode
Only one of the Brazilian's six chances hit the target, Bentley was forced to make a good save at the end, and the most striking miss was a free kick from outside the penalty area in the first half, when it seemed harder to miss the target. . Weghorst also missed a six-yard free kick and Sancho had another of those days where you wonder what kind of striker he should be. Of course, it's hard to imagine him getting ahead of Garnacho next season as the pair seem to be on opposite trajectories.
This was Garnacho's first appearance in two months since his ankle injury and his return was warmly received by the fans. fans who expect their attackers to play with a swagger and confidence that is both exhilarating and intimidating. Garnacho's pace and movement brought an immediate uplift and his goal was the biggest cheer of the day.
«One of the aspects of the greatest talents is that they are mature, they take charge and use their skills, they can dominate over opponents. Ten Hag said. “He has a big impact on many games, whether he starts or not.”
Manchester United vs Wolverhampton Wanderers lineups 2022-23
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