Report and Ratings : Norwich City 1-2 Manchester United

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Captain Harry Maguire scored in the dying seconds of extra-time to send Manchester United into the FA Cup semi-final; the result rescued a poor performance but will not protect the manager from criticism after selecting a team lacking in penetration – a story all too familiar.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made many changes, as expected, but perhaps sprung a bit of a surprise by keeping Bruno Fernandes and Luke Shaw in the first team – in particular Shaw, who seemed to struggle with another long game.

Elsewhere, this was United’s “runners” team – with Jesse Lingard, Fred, Scott McTominay and Odion Ighalo in from the start. Juan Mata’s inclusion gave confirmation that this was a second string eleven, and a reminder of the strides forward made by United in the last year.

Just a year ago many of these players were considered starters and the performance bore more than a passing resemblance to those early games under Solskjaer – a bright start with lots of that running, then a lack of ideas and urgency, a sense of tiredness and lethargy, and a sigh of relief that the first half didn’t end with the concession of a goal.

Unfortunately for United fans, they’ve been here so many times that they know this is the pattern, and so you have to hope for capitalisation on those positive moments. Thankfully one came early in the second half.

Luke Shaw’s cross towards Juan Mata seemed hopeful and hopeless at the same time; the diminutive Spaniard was crowded out by three home defenders, one of whom sliced the ball towards Ighalo, who showed fine invention to fire past Tim Krul.

But this United team are not good enough that the manager can afford to make wholesale changes. There is a big chasm in quality, speed, and style. And, when you start with so many players who surely don’t have a long term career at the club, it has proven difficult time and time again for United to increase the tempo in games where they have been pedestrian.

To his credit, and perhaps sensing this, Solskjaer made three changes – Marcus Rashford, Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams came on for the unimpressive trio of Mata, Lingard and Dalot. But it was all so disjointed and Norwich found their own hope. On 75 minutes Todd Cantwell hit a 25-yard drive which Sergio Romero might have done better with.

Solskjaer responded by bringing on Matic and Pogba. United were in the ascendancy, at least in terms of controlling the game, and in the last minute Timm Klose was red-carded for hauling Ighalo down. Norwich survived for extra time and from then, it was a war of attrition with the hosts clearly looking to run the game out for penalties. United had most of their craft and goal threat on the pitch but were unconvincing – more damning considering their opponents were hardly watertight.

In the last minute Maguire scrambled home after Pogba had clipped a pass into the box and the relief was palpable; afterwards, United’s players seemed to know they had got away with one.

One could argue it should be a promising sign for a team to win when they haven’t played well, but instead it seems a huge let-off for Solskjaer who wasn’t punished for making such a drastic team selection. 

With five substitutions available it is surely better to control the game and then make changes when necessary in the second half. As it was, Pogba, Matic, Greenwood, Maguire and Shaw have all ended up playing much longer than they might have done, and all we have learned is a reinforcement of what we knew before kick-off. 

Indeed, Solskjaer will surely be a relieved man tonight. The philosopher George Santayana said : “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” – but the United boss would be hardly likely to forget it if this selection had cost him a place in the FA Cup. The biggest concern was that after all the positive moves United have made, and Solskjaer certainly deserves the credit for that, a team like this is deemed as a viable option for a quarter final of any competition.

It is a matter of concern if Solskjaer believed the team which started would have the penetration to win because it would suggest he feels Fernandes can overcome too many shortcomings. He is only one player.

As it stands, this is going to have to be a valuable lesson learned. 

United have made huge strides with the quality of their first team but that does not mean there has been a sudden miraculous improvement or change in attributes in the players beneath that first selection.

They got away with it today because it was against the worst team in the league, in the last minute of extra time, after playing with ten men for 30 minutes. If the manager repeats this error it is likely to be costly. 

In the short-term, like today, that could have ended a chance of a trophy. United can’t afford to be picky. Neither than Solskjaer.

Ratings :

Romero 6

Dalot  5

Bailly 6

Maguire  7

Shaw 5

Fred 7

McTominay 6

Mata 5

Fernandes 6

Lingard 5

Ighalo 6

Subs :

Greenwood 6

Rashford 6

Williams 6

Matic 6

Pogba 6

Martial 5

Wayne Barton

Wayne is a writer and producer. His numerous books on Manchester United include the family-authorised biography of Jimmy Murphy. He wrote and produced the BT Sport films 'Too Good To Go Down' in 2018, and 'True Genius', in 2021, both adapted from his books of the same name. In 2015 he was described by the Independent as the 'leading writer on Manchester United' and former club chairman Martin Edwards has described him as 'the pre-eminent writer on the club'.

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