1
Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw with Fulham in their second Premier League game of the season.
Sadly, Man United appeared to be losing intensity as the match wore on, losing their lead to win their first point in two matches in the new campaign.
First half
Barely 90 seconds in, United intercepted the hosts in their own half, with Matheus Cunha sending a speculative shot over the crossbar.
Moments later, Cunha was at it again. Mason Mount threaded the ball to the Brazilian in the box, whose shot beat the keeper but could not beat the post. It was unlucky for Cunha, who did well to outplay the Fulham defence.
United continued to show confidence on the ball, with Cunha laying the ball off to Mount, who cut it back to Bruno Fernandes. The United skipper took a long shot that forced a save from the goalkeeper.
In a defensive error, United allowed Joshua King of Fulham to break through the defence. Altay Bayindir did well to pull out a leg save to deny Fylham an early goal.
Seconds later, Bayindir punted the ball up the opposite end, with Cunha getting on the end of it and taking a threatening shot that Leno was fortunate to save. Cunha appeared increasingly likely to score as the match wore on.
15 minutes in, Fulham earned a corner kick. Alex Iwobi was waiting on the edge of the box, taking an admirable volley that Bayindir did excellently to save. The hosts came close to scoring yet again from their next corner, with Bassey hitting his shot wide. Much like in the Arsenal match, Bayindir lacked confidence from the corner, easily being brushed aside by the attackers.
With little over 10 minutes of the half to play, VAR performed a penalty check after Bassey was adjudged to have pulled down Mount during a corner.
After the referee checked the incident on the sidelines, he determined that a penalty should be awarded.
Fernandes made his way to the penalty spot, shockingly blasting the ball over the top in what was an uncharacteristic moment from the United skipper. Usually a penalty master, Fernandes missed a crucial penalty, keeping the game scoreless.
Soon after the restart, Casemiro received a yellow card for diving. He would need to be careful for the remainder of the game.
Iwobi surged into United’s box, crossing the ball only for Bayindir to make a critical save.
The referee blew the whistle for half-time, giving United plenty to reflect on with their performance continually dipping as the match progressed. They would hope to rediscover their fine form from the opening minutes upon returning for the second half.
Second half
It was a positive start to the second half, with manager Ruben Amorim clearly speaking some sense into his players at half-time.
Mount passed the ball to Amad Diallo on the right, whose decent shot from a tight angle was denied by Leno.
After the 51st minute, Amorim made his first two changes of the afternoon. Casemiro and Amad came off for Diego Dalot and Benjamin Sesko, who was still in search of his first United goal after just one appearance.
It looked as if Fulham broke through the defence, but Yoro made an excellent sliding interception to dispossess Josh King.
Just before the hour mark, United found their breakthrough. Bryan Mbeumo sent a surgical corner kick toward Leny Yoro, whose header hit Muniz before finding the back of the net. 1-0 to United in what was a great moment of relief for Amorim’s team.
Fulham came close to equalising in the 68th minute, with Iwobi taking a speculative shot on the edge of the box that just veered over the crossbar.
Then, Manuel Ugarte came on to replace Mount.
With 18 minutes to play, Fulham equalised. Substitute Emile Smith-Rowe burst into the box unmarked, putting the ball past Bayindir. Dalot was the guilty party, not taking note of the Fulham forward who made his run completely unopposed.
With less than five minutes to play, Amorim swapped Yoro and Shaw for Harry Maguire and Ayden Heaven.
Moments later, Mbeumo found the head of Maguire from a corner, with the late substitute’s shot going inches wide. Still, it was a positive substitution for United, clearly providing some much-needed energy with stoppage time looming.
While United appeared hungry for a goal in five minutes of stoppage time, it wasn’t to be, as the match remained level.
Starting XI: Bayindir, De Ligt, Mount, Fernandes, Cunha, Dorgu, Yoro, Amad, Casemiro, Mbeumo, Shaw
Subs: Dalot, Sesko, Ugarte, Maguire, Heaven
Featured image Mike Hewitt via Getty Images
Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social
