Substitute Cavani saved points after a nightmare round

Newcastle – Manchester United 1-1

Manchester United had a very tough time against relegation-threatened Newcastle at St James’ Park on Monday night.

TV 2’s expert Trevor Morley, believes the first round against the relegation candidate is one of the weakest he has seen of the team.

– Manchester United looked a little better in the second half, but could hardly have been worse in the first, he says after the match, which ended in a draw thanks to substitute Edinson Cavani’s equalizer 20 minutes before the end.

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– I did not like this achievement. We’re trying to get better at controlling matches. We did not do that today, with the exception of a few brief moments, says Ralf Rangnick.

The United manager believes his team made too many simple mistakes against Newcastle.

– If you want to be competitive in such a match, you have to play physically. We did not do that today, and therefore we deleted. We need to get better physically and more precisely, he says.

The Manchester United captain believes that the point his team received was fair.

– It was not our best performance today. We did not play well enough, and especially gave away the ball too much in the first half, says Harry Maguire after the match.

He thought the two-week break the team got after having an outbreak in the stable, has been difficult.

– I will not make excuses, but it has been difficult. Our training ground has been closed and several of the players have returned after being infected. It is an unpredictable season, where you have to deal with changes along the way. In any case, it has been difficult with such a long break, he says.

Newcastle, for their part, delivered an achievement Sean Longstaff believes the team can be proud of.

– I feel that we deserved to win, to be honest. It will be a disappointment in the locker room, but it is also positive that we make such an achievement, Longstaff says to Sky Sports.

Shock start

Victor Lindelöf took a positive corona test on Sunday, and was not available for the match against relegation-threatened Newcastle. Raphaël Varane, on the other hand, was back from the start for Manchester United for the first time in two months.

The Frenchman got off to a bad start in the match when he messed it up after seven minutes of play. It took advantage of his compatriot, Allan Saint-Maximin, who snatched the ball and placed it beautifully in goal.

– It is a magnificent goal from a forward-looking Newcastle team, said football expert Petter Myhre about the goal.

Manchester United delivered a messy second half, with a series of easy ball losses. At the same time, the home team appeared with confidence and offensive courage, well helped by an electric home crowd. Although they were served bad news when Callum Wilson limped off the field with something resembling a stretch in the leg, they could with good reason applaud their team off the field after the first half.

The away fans could not.

– This is one of the worst rounds I have seen from Manchester United in a long time, said TV 2 expert Trevor Morley during the break.

In it, Ralf Rangnick took hold.

Fred and Mason Greenwood were substituted, while Jadon Sancho and Edinson Cavani were substituted, without seeming to lift Manchester United’s deplorable performance right away.

Increasingly frustrated United players struggled to create chances, and were pressured by a bubbling Newcastle team.

Still, it was the Reds, and substitute Edinson Cavani who scored 20 minutes before full time.

After some hesitant final minutes, where Newcastle had several great opportunities to take the victory, the match ended 1-1.

– I am very pleased with the achievement. We were very good, but left with the feeling that we did not get what we deserved. We deserved to win, says Eddie Howe.

He thought Monday’s match was the best Newcastle have delivered since he became coach of the team.

– We were close in defense and were a real threat to the transitions throughout the match. We showed some very positive signs for the future, says the Newcastle coach.

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