Manchester: An absolute mouthwatering clash ended as Manchester United beat Leeds United 6-2 in the Premier League at the Old Trafford stadium in Manchester on Sunday (December 20).
Bruno Fernandes and Scott McTominay both netted a brace with Victor Lindelof and Daniel James scored one apiece for the Red Devils while Liam Cooper and Stuart Dallas were on target for Leeds.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer set up his side in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Victor Lindelof being paired with Harry Maguire at the heart of the defence. McTominay along with Fred formed a double pivot in the midfield. Anthony Martial lead the forward line alongside Daniel James and Marcus Rashford with Bruno Fernandes playing as a no.10 behind them.
The match was expected to be one watch to out as both sides met after a gap of sixteen years with lots of history behind it.
United hit early courtesy McTominay who drilled it low from a Fernandes into the corner of the net before the Scottish midfielder was on target again a minute later with his perfect run behind the defensive shield of Leeds to find the back of the net.
Despite that, Leeds were constantly threatening the United defence with excellent fast build ups, stringing passes and getting shots on the target but couldn’t add the finishing touch.
Fernandes opened his account shortly after that when his hard low driven shot was too much for Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier to deal with before Lindelof scored the fourth goal for the home side scoring it from a corner after being left unmarked in the box.
But the relentless approach from visitors earned their first goal of the evening when Cooper headed from a corner beating goalkeeper David de Gea. Even towards the end of the half, the intensity was pretty much the same with Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa making his play with high energy and intent.
In the second half, there were galore of opportunities that were being created by both sides. McTominay and Fernandes were having an excellent game together with the former putting on a man of the match performance.
]James scored the fifth one going through on goal before finishing it comfortably before Fernandes as always reliable converted his spot-kick to score the sixth. Leeds got one back through Dallas whose magnificent shot taken with utmost precision and technique found the top corner of the net making De Gea stunned but that was a mere consolation.
Bielsa’s tactics should lay more emphasis on the defensive side but he insisted to continue his side’s attacking approach to the game and though it received a few criticisms after the match one would not deny the excitement joy for the neutral to witness the fixture with a total of 43 shots being struck at the goal throughout the match.
