03 January,2021 11:01 AM IST | Manchester | AFP
Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United scores a penalty during the EPL tie against Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Friday. Pic/Getty Images
Bruno Fernandes scoring a penalty has become a very familiar sight for Manchester United. Being among the Premier League frontrunners has not been seen in recent years for the fallen giant.
United went level on points with leader Liverpool with a 2-1 victory over Aston Villa on Friday. The win was secured by Fernandes scoring his ninth spotkick since making his debut 11 months ago.
While United is still behind Liverpool on goal difference, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has won one more and has the team looking well-placed to mount a challenge for a first title since 2013.
Alex Ferguson, who produced United's record-extending 20th English title before retiring eight years ago, was among just a few hundred allowed into Old Trafford to witness this New Year's Day game in a city in near-lockdown.
A day after his 79th birthday, the Scot saw Anthony Martial head United in front in the 40th minute at the end of a counterattack started by Paul Pogba. And it was Pogba who won the penalty, from the restart after Bertrand Traore's equaliser, that allowed Fernandes to clinch the win in the 61st minute.
Such has been United's decline in the post-Ferguson years that only once in 2018, under Jose Mourinho, has United finished second and then it was 19 points behind Manchester City. And when Solskjaer opened 2020 with United 27 points behind eventual champion Liverpool, the manager's days looked numbered. "It's such a big difference when you look 12 months back. It's a good position to be in but we need to improve and get better," Solskjaer said.
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
