“I watched Man United vs Ranger match from one to 90-minutes and here are the three mistakes I spotted from Ruben Amorim”: Man United’s hero Sir Alex Ferguson has openly discussed the three biggest mistakes made by the club’s manager Ruben Amorim against Ranger
Rangers faced off against Manchester United in a ‘Battle of Britain’ Europa League showdown at Old Trafford.
Bruno Fernandes crushed Rangers heats as the Manchester United skipper notched a dramatic injury-time winner to give his side a crucial 2-1 victory in an epic ‘Battle of Britain’ Europa League showdown at Old Trafford.
Philippe Clement’s side were still celebrating Cyriel Dessers’ 88th minute equaliser after the Nigerian striker had cancelled out Jack Butland’s earlier own goal before Fernandes inflicted a late blow and cut short the visiting fans celebrations by latching onto Lisandro Martinez’s cross at the back post to rifle home a first-time shot through the legs of Butland in the second minute of stoppage time.
There was little to separate the two sides in the first-half with chances at either end, but a patched up Rangers side were unable to come away with a precious point that would have been huge in the context of securing a top-eight place in the competition.
It leaves the Light Blues down sitting in 13th spot in the table and requiring a victory over Belgian outfit Royale Union Saint-Gilloise, while hoping results elsewhere fall in their favour to secure a direct path through to the next round. A place in the knockout stages, however, remains achievable.
I was in attendance at Old Trafford for the match. Here are three things I spotted from the press box…
Touching Denis Law tribute
Manchester United and Scotland legend Denis Law passed away last week at the age of 84, and a sea of tributes had been laid surrounding the iconic ‘Holy Trinity’ statue of Law, George Best and Bobby Charlton outside Old Trafford. A small delegation from Rangers, led by former captain Barry Ferguson, laid a wreath for the striker, who scored 30 goals in 55 appearances for his country between 1958 and 1974. They left a touching handwritten message which read: “In Loving Memory from the directors, management, players and staff at Rangers Football Club.”
United fans also saluted ‘The King’ by dedicating a special 15-page tribute to him in the matchday programme, while a large-scale banner was unfurled ahead of kick-off in the Stretford End as both teams emerged from the tunnel.
More injury concerns
As if Clement hasn’t already had enough injury woes to deal with this season, now the Belgian has another two men walking wounded. Midfielder Connor Barron – starting in place of the suspended Mohamed Diomande – appeared to jar his knee in a challenge with Diogo Dalot that he attempted to walk off gingerly toward the end of the first-half. Minutes later, central defender Leon Balogun went to ground clutching his ankle but was initially able to carry on until half-time.
Both players were assessed by club medics at the interval but failed to re-emerge for the start of the second half. 8-year-old Bailey Rice and Ross McCausland were put through a rather hasty warm-up before entering the fray as Clement was forced into re-shuffling his pack. It was a makeshift back four with skipper James Tavernier shifting across to centre-back and Ridvan Yilmaz moving across from the left wing to right-back, adding extra pressure to their rearguard.
It got worse for Clement on the hour mark when winger Vaclav Cerny limped off to be replaced by academy product Findlay Curtis. This was fast developing into a case of square pegs in round holes for the visitors.
Butland blunder on Old Trafford return
Making his return to the matchday squad for the first time in six weeks at a venue he knows extremely well, Rangers No.1 Jack Butland made a couple of strong first-half saves to deny Lisandro Martínez wicked strike and former Ibrox loanee Amad Diallo’s effort from close range.
But he endured a costly moment to forget which led to United’s opener after the break. The Englishman attempted to punch a Christian Eriksen corner away to safety under pressure but fluffed his lines big time by allowing the ball to fly over his own head straight into his own net. This was a howler of epic proportions. Butland simply had to do better. He certainly won’t want to watch a replay of that again.
