Man Utd Vs Arsenal Match Report

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 ARSENAL
2
Barclays Premier League | 28 February 2016 | Old
Trafford | Attendance: 75,329 | Scorers: Rashford
(29', 32'), Herrera (65'); Welbeck (40'), Ozil (69')

Marcus Rashford scored two goals and set up
another as Manchester United secured a dramatic
3-2 victory over Barclays Premier League rivals
Arsenal.
The young striker repeated his midweek debut
heroics, firing United into a 2-0 lead with a double
in three first-half minutes, but former Red Danny
Welbeck pulled one back five minutes before the
break.
Rashford was involved again with 25 minutes
remaining, teeing up Ander Herrera to add a third,
and Mezut Ozil's reply proved in vain for Arsene
Wenger's side.
Ahead of the game, the Reds were boosted by the
news of David De Gea's return to the starting line-
up, in one of two changes from the side that beat
Midtjylland on Thursday. Marcos Rojo was also
named on the teamsheet, having come on as a late
substitute against the Danish champions.
As expected, both sides were eager to make an
early impression and came out of the traps quickly.
The first chance was a significant one and fell at
the feet of Nacho Monreal, who was found
superbly by Ozil on six minutes but couldn't beat
De Gea from close range.
The Reds had an appeal for a penalty turned down
shortly after, as Rashford went past two defenders
before going down under a challenge from Gabriel
Paulista. Replays showed the fouled occurred
outside the area, and Memphis forced Petr Cech
into a good save from the resulting free-kick.
With chances few and far between, the game burst
into life just before the half-hour mark. United
broke forward in numbers and the ball found
Guillermo Varela on the right; Arsenal failed to
clear the youngster's first-time cross, and Rashford
calmly fired the Reds into the lead.
The goal left the Gunners shaken, and Wenger's
men were soon picking the ball out of their net
again. The Reds attacked at pace once more, and
another right-wing cross did the damage. Varela
picked out Jesse Lingard, and the winger's pin-
point delivery was met by Rashford, who headed
beyond Cech to send Old Trafford into raptures.
Arsenal weren't going down easily, though, and
fought back five minutes before the break. Again
Ozil was the provider, whipping in a free-kick for
Welbeck to easily nod home, and cap an
entertaining half of football.

HALF-TIME STATISTICS
POSSESSION: United 45% Arsenal 55%
SHOTS (ON TARGET): United 4 (3) Arsenal 8 (2)
CORNERS: United 0 Arsenal 2

The second half began as the first had ended, with
the visitors on the front foot. Having played a key
role in October's reverse fixture, Alexis Sanchez
was starting to grow into the game, and saw an
effort well blocked by Rojo after darting along the
18-yard line.
The United defender was forced off shortly after
following a 50-50 challenge with Welbeck, meaning
18-year-old Timothy Fosu-Mensah would make his
first-team debut. The injury setback prompted
Arsenal into a change of their own, with Olivier
Giroud on for the final 30 minutes.
It was Louis van Gaal's side who continued to
create the better chances, though, and the next
opportunity provided United's third. Rashford picked
up the ball in the Arsenal area and turned before
teeing up Herrera, whose shot took a heavy
deflection off Laurent Koscielny on its way in.
Memphis might have added a fourth after more
excellent hold-up play by Rashford, but the
Gunners again produced a quick response. Welbeck
found space in the area and produced a superb
save from De Gea, but Ozil was there to score
from the rebound, volleying in off the turf.
Tensions inside Old Trafford were as high as they
had been throughout the game, and players from
both sides were booked during a period that was
typical of the fixture. Amid the chaos, Arsenal were
still looking for an equaliser, and Giroud reminded
the Reds of his aerial threat when heading over the
bar with time running out.
Though chances were few and far between, the
away side continued to press, and five minutes of
added time were announced at the end of the half.
United, though, stood strong to see out a vital win
and claim all three points.

FULL-TIME STATISTICS
POSSESSION: United 39% Arsenal 61%
SHOTS (ON TARGET): United 7 (5) Arsenal 13 (5)
CORNERS: United 2 Arsenal 3

THE TEAMS
United: De Gea, Varela, Carrick (c), Blind, Rojo
(Fosu-Mensah 55'), Schneiderlin, Herrera (Weir
90+5'), Lingard, Mata, Memphis, Rashford (Januzaj
80').
Subs not used: Romero, McNair, Riley, Pereira.
Booked: Varela, Carrick, Herrera.

Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal,
Ramsey, Coquelin (Elneny 70'), Walcott (Giroud 63'),
Ozil, Sanchez, Welbeck (Iwobi 83').
Subs not used: Ospina, Mertesacker, Gibbs,
Campbell.
Booked: Ramsey, Elneny, Ozil.

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Man Utd Vs FC Midtjylland (2nd Leg)

MANCHESTER UNITED 5
MIDTJYLLAND 1 (AGG: 6-3)

Europa League Round of 32, second leg | 25
February 2016 | Old Trafford | Attendance: 58,609 |
Scorers: Bodurov og (32), Rashford 63, 75, Herrera
88 (pen), Memphis 90 / Sisto 27

Young striker Marcus Rashford had a night to
remember as he marked his debut with a brace
that helped fire Manchester United into the last 16
of the Europa League as the Reds overturned
Midtjylland's first-leg advantage despite falling
behind.
Pione Sisto followed up his goal in Denmark with a
stylish opener but a much-changed Reds line-up
showed great resolve to hit back swiftly through
Nikolay Bodurov's own goal. Mikkel Andersen
saved Juan Mata's first-half penalty but Rashford
stole the show after the interval with two poacher's
strikes to end the visitors' resistance.
As the Danes tired badly, and lost Andre Romer to
a second yellow card in the closing stages, Ander
Herrera converted a spot-kick and Memphis Depay
wrapped it up with a goal his performance
deserved.
As in the first leg, United lost a key man in the
warm-up with Anthony Martial forced to make way
for Rashford, who was promoted from the bench to
deputise for the French forward. Rashford had a
low shot turned away by Andersen as the Reds set
about trying to overturn the first-leg deficit.
Kian Hansen almost deflected a Memphis cross
into his own net and Kristoffer Olsson's clearance
cannoned off Jesse Lingard and into the side-
netting as the visitors rode their luck with some
desperate defending. Out of nothing, though, they
extended their overall lead to 3-1 on 27 minutes.
Sisto dribbled through the defence before supplying
a neat finish that rolled wide of Sergio Romero for
the opener.
Romero escaped with a risky clearance seconds
later but Louis van Gaal's men regained their
composure with Memphis firing straight at
Andersen after being picked out inside the area by
Morgan Schneiderlin's astute pass. The ever-
positive Memphis whistled another shot wide and
was instrumental in the equaliser.
Guillermo Varela and Mata were involved in the
move that led to Memphis powering down the left
and his dangerous cross was turned past Andersen
by Bodurov. Schneiderlin sent an overhead kick off
target and went closer with a header that struck a
post from Joe Riley's superb cross.
When Herrera was hacked down by Romer inside
the box, although Daley Blind had the ball in a
promising position, referee Istvan Vad pointed to
the spot. Mata stepped up but shot too close to
Andersen, who pulled off a smart save low to his
right tip the effort away with only a couple of
minutes to go in the first half.

HALF-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: United 73% Midtjylland 27%
SHOTS: United 10 Midtjylland 1
SHOTS ON TARGET: United 4 Midtjylland 1
CORNERS: United 8 Midtjylland 0

United kept up the pressure after the restart but
Schneiderlin and Herrera both contrived to miss
excellent chances, with the Spaniard heading the
wrong side of the near post following more good
wing-play by Memphis. Midtjylland attempted to
eat up time at every opportunity but were undone
when Mata kept the ball in to centre for Rashford
to pounce from close range to level the aggregate
score at 3-3 with 63 minutes gone.
Things got even better for the youngster when he
was in the right place at the right time again to
convert Varela's cross from the right, soon after
the Uruguayan switched flanks with Riley. It put
United ahead overall and Rashford nodded over as
he chased his hat-trick.
The referee had seen fit to caution Lingard for
simulation rather than award a second penalty but
he did point to the spot again when Memphis had a
shot handled by Kian Hansen, with Herrera making
no mistake by smashing past Andersen. Soon
afterwards, Romer was dismissed for tugging back
Memphis.
Memphis had tricked and teased his way down the
left all night and he added the fifth late on,
steering an accurate drive into the corner of the
net after advancing with menace towards goal.
Substitute Andreas Pereira came close to making it
six and Regan Poole made his debut towards the
end as this was a job well done by the Reds, who
are safely into the hat for Friday's draw.

FULL-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: United 71% Midtjylland 29%
SHOTS: United 25 Midtjylland 2
SHOTS ON TARGET: United 9 Midtjylland 1
CORNERS: United 14 Midtjylland 1

THE TEAMS
United: Romero, Varela, Carrick, Blind, Riley (Rojo
79), Schneiderlin, Herrera (Poole 91), Lingard
(A.Pereira 86), Mata, Memphis, Rashford. Subs not
used: J.Pereira, Love, McNair. Booked: Lingard .

Midtjylland: Andersen, Romer, Hansen, Bodurov,
Novak, Sparv, Hassan (Kadlec 67), Olsson (Pusic
79), Poulsen, Sisto, Urena (Onuachua 45). Subs not
used: Dahlin, Banggaard Jensen, Bak Nielsen,
Royer. Booked: Novak, Romer. Sent off: Romer.

MATCH REACTION
"It was a great performance and I think the fans
will have enjoyed our attacking football. I believe
they crossed the middle line for the first time when
they scored. Normally you get a decline in
confidence, but it was not like that as we scored,
but missed a penalty – unbelievable! Still we kept
going and going so I must give great compliment
to my players because it is not so easy to do that."
- Louis van Gaal

"Tonight was good and we enjoyed it out on the
pitch. Everybody could see that. We are very happy
to go through and we have to keep this spirit in the
team as we move forward to Sunday." - Memphis

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Shrewsbury Vs Man Utd Match Report

SHREWSBURY TOWN 0 UNITED 3

Emirates FA Cup fifth round | 22 February 2016 |
Greenhous Meadow | Attendance: 9,370 | Scorers:
Smalling (37'), Mata (45+2'), Lingard (61’)

Manchester United set up an Emirates FA Cup
quarter-final meeting with West Ham after
comfortably seeing off Shrewsbury Town 3-0 on
Monday night.
The Reds dominated the game and took a
deserved lead on 37 minutes when captain-for-the-
night Chris Smalling fired home, before Juan Mata
doubled the advantage with a superb free-kick on
the stroke of half-time. Jesse Lingard grabbed a
third with just under half an hour remaining to cap
a clinical performance.
Ahead of the clash, Louis van Gaal made three
changes to the side that lost at Midtjylland on
Thursday, with Guillermo Varela, Cameron
Borthwick-Jackson and Morgan Schneiderlin all
coming in to the starting line-up.
The players walked out to a huge ovation at a
packed Greenhous Meadow, but United were quick
to settle into the contest, and in turn settle any
pre-match nerves. The first opportunity of the
game fell to Smalling with just two minutes on the
clock, as the defender rose unmarked in the area
but could only head Daley Blind’s corner over the
bar.
Having found the net in the Europa League last
time out, Memphis looked eager to make his mark
again in the opening stages, and twice cut in from
the left before firing high into the stands. It was
almost third time lucky for the Dutchman on 11
minutes, but after twisting and turning to find
space in the box, his low effort was palmed away
well by Shrews goalkeeper Jayson Leutwiler.
With van Gaal’s men in total control of possession,
Mata went in search of an opener mid-way through
the half after picking up the ball on the right, but
the Spaniard’s shot deflected wide. The Reds
came even closer just before the half-hour mark,
when Memphis picked out Anthony Martial in the
area. Leutwiler did well to get a foot to the
Frenchman’s deflected strike, but the ball looped
into the air and had to be cleared off the line by
Abu Ogogo.
United finally made the hosts pay eight minutes
before the break, as Schneiderlin nodded the ball
into Smalling’s path, allowing the defender to volley
into the turf and beyond Leutwiler. A second soon
followed, after Martial was brought down on the
edge of the area, allowing Mata to dispatch a
perfectly-placed free-kick with the Shrewsbury
stopper rooted to the spot.

HALF-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Shrewsbury 21% United 79%
SHOTS: Shrewsbury 0 United 15
SHOTS ON TARGET: Shrewsbury 0 United 4
CORNERS: Shrewsbury 0 United 6

After failing to register an attempt on goal in the
first 45 minutes, the home side introduced former
United midfielder Larnell Cole at the interval, but
the Reds continued to dictate the play. There was
little in the way of goalscoring opportunities until
the 54th minute, when Memphis again cut in from
the left, but saw his shot drop narrowly wide with
the help of a deflection.
United claimed a third just after the hour-mark
though, when Ander Herrera’s pin-point pass found
an unmarked Lingard at the far post, and the
winger slid the ball home on the half-volley to the
delight of the travelling fans behind the goal.
Lingard might have made it four ten minutes later,
after racing through on goal, but couldn’t get the
ball out of his feet and stabbed an effort just wide.
With the Reds’ progression all but sealed, Andreas
Pereira and Will Keane were introduced for the final
stages, and the duo almost combined to extend the
lead on 74 minutes. The latter turned and fired a
shot off the woodwork, but was injured in the
process, leaving United with 10 men for the final
quarter of an hour.
Despite the Shrews’ one-man advantage, the
damage had long been done, but the home side
had a final chance on 87 minutes. Agogo might
have claimed a consolation when he was found in
acres of space in the area, but headed wide when
it seemed easier to score. Instead, Sergio
Romero's clean sheet remained intact, and the
Reds will now face West Ham at Old Trafford with
a place at Wembley in the semi-finals at stake.

FULL-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Shrewsbury 24% United 76%
SHOTS: Shrewsbury 2 United 25
SHOTS ON TARGET: Shrewsbury 0 United 5
CORNERS: Shrewsbury 0 United 8

THE TEAMS
Shrewsbury: Leutwiler, Whitbread, Grandison, Black,
Whalley, Brown, Grimmer, Ogogo, Mangan, Knight-
Percival (Cole 46’), Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro (Clark
81’).
Subs not used: Halstead, Sadler, Vernon, Clark,
Smith, Grandin.
Booked: Whitbread, Grimmer

United: Romero, Varela, Smalling, Blind, Borthwick-
Jackson (Riley 46’), Schneiderlin, Herrera, Memphis,
Mata (Pereira 65’), Lingard, Martial (Keane 71’).
Subs not used: Henderson, McNair, Poole, Carrick.

MATCH REACTION
" I have to say that the first 70 minutes we were
controlling the game and won every second ball
and played very good. We kept the ball also and
made goals – we could have scored more I think. I
was very happy for the players because they were
so committed to win." - Louis van Gaal

"I think it's a very special competition to play.
There is a lot of history and many difficult games
against sides like Shrewsbury and I think we did
well from the beginning and that was key." - Juan
Mata

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FC Midtjylland vs Man Utd Match Report

FC MIDTJYLLAND 2 MANCHESTER
UNITED 1

UEFA Europa League | 18 February 2016 | MCH
Arena | Attendance: 9,182 | Scorers: Memphis (37'),
Sisto (44'), Onuachu (77')

Manchester United must overcome a shock first-
leg defeat to FC Midtjylland in order to progress to
the Europa League Round of 16, after a
disappointing 2-1 loss at the MCH Arena.
Memphis Depay opened the scoring on 38 minutes
after converting Jesse Lingard's cross, a goal
which was quickly cancelled out by Pione Sisto's
deflected effort on the stroke of half-time. United
looked the more likely to convert after the break,
but Paul Onuachu's strike was enough to give the
hosts an advantage.
Ahead of the game, Louis van Gaal made four
changes to the team that lost at Sunderland last
weekend by handing young defender Donald Love a
first start at right-back, with Paddy McNair, Ander
Herrera and Memphis also named in the line-up. A
fifth change to the teamsheet was then made late
on, after David De Gea was injured in the warm-up
and had to be replaced by Sergio Romero.
After a cagey opening period, the first chance fell
to Memphis on eight minutes with the winger's
close-range shot being diverted away for a corner
after a pin-point pass from Lingard. The Reds
almost took the lead from the resulting set-piece,
as Juan Mata found space at the near post but
saw his shot well saved by Mikkel Andersen.
Midtjylland were equally keen to make their
attacking intentions known, and were inches away
from converting a corner of their own just three
minutes later, only for Romero to save superbly
from Kian Hansen. In an open contest, both sides
continued to threaten from dead-ball situations, and
it was another corner which brought the next
opportunity. Smalling ghosted in unmarked to meet
Mata's deep delivery, but his header flashed across
the face of goal and was cleared to safety.
There were chances at either end with 10 minutes
of the first half remaining as Memphis's free-kick
forced a good save from Andersen, allowing the
hosts to counter through Vaclav Kadlec and he
was then denied by Romero after racing into the
United box.
Just 56 seconds later though, the Reds were
ahead. Lingard broke down the right-hand side and
produced a low cross for Memphis to scramble
home his sixth goal of the season, much to the
delight of the travelling fans. Van Gaal's men were
pegged back just before the break though, as Sisto
cut out Michael Carrick's pass and fired past
Romero with the help of a deflection off Smalling.

HALF-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Midtjylland 38% United 62%
SHOTS: Midtjylland 4 United 7
SHOTS ON TARGET: Midtjylland 3 United 3
CORNERS: Midtjylland 2 United 5

The setback before the break didn't appear to
unsettle United, and it wasn't long before the Reds
created another opening. Great footwork from
Anthony Martial on the edge of the area allowed
Lingard an effort on goal, but the winger's 20-yard
strike sailed over the bar.
With United pressing, Mata almost restored the
advantage on 52 minutes after finding acres of
space in the box, but could only head Memphis's
cross wide. The Reds were on top and came even
closer to a second, as Lingard's vicious drive came
back off the crossbar following an excellent
diagonal ball from Herrera.
While the woodwork had come to Midtjylland's
rescue, it took a piece of brilliance from Romero at
the other end to deny what looked a certain goal.
In a rare attack from the home side, Onuachu rose
highest to meet a cross but the Argentinian keeper
produced a diving save to claw the header around
the post.
A roll of the dice saw Morgan Schneiderlin and
Andreas Pereira introduced for the final stages, but
the Reds were dealt another blow 13 minutes from
time. The substitute Onuachu picked up the ball on
the edge of the area and fire a low drive into the
corner, leaving United in need of a grandstand
finish.
Carrick, captaining the Reds in the absence of
Wayne Rooney, had a final opportunity to salvage a
draw but headed over the bar to leave the tie well
and truly in the balance.

FULL-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Midtjylland 37% United 63%
SHOTS: Midtjylland 12 United 14
SHOTS ON TARGET: Midtjylland 6 United 3
CORNERS: Midtjylland 2 United 7

THE TEAMS
Midtjylland: Andersen, Rømer, Kian, Bodurov,
Novak, Kadlec (Royer 85'), Sparv, Olsson, Hassan
(Urena 67'), Sisto, Pusic (Onuachu 61').
Subs not used: Dahlin, Duelund, Banggaard Jensen,
Bak Nielsen.
Booked:

United: Romero, Love, Smalling, McNair, Blind,
Herrera (Schneiderlin 72'), Carrick, Lingard, Mata
(Pereira 77'), Memphis, Martial.
Subs not used: Poole, Riley, Weir, Keane.
Booked: Love, Lingard, Smalling.

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Sunderland Vs Man Utd Match Report

SUNDERLAND 2 MANCHESTER
UNITED 1

Barclays Premier League | 13 February 2016 |
Stadium of Light | Attendance: 41,687 | Scorers:
Khazri 3', Martial 39', De Gea o.g. 82'.

Manchester United fell to an agonising 2-1 defeat
at the Stadium of Light as a late Lamine Kone
header was diverted into his own net by the
unfortunate David de Gea.
Whabi Khazri opened the scoring with a third-
minute free-kick, before Anthony Martial equalised,
but United's defence was breached for a second
time as Kone's powerful downward header from a
corner rebounded off De Gea to send the Reds
home pointless.
United boss Louis van Gaal made one change to
his starting XI as Morgan Schneiderlin replaced
Marouane Fellaini, but there was a new and quite
aptly-named youngster on the bench with 21-year-
old defender Donald Love included in the matchday
squad for the first time on this Valentine's weekend
trip to Wearside. Will Keane was also among the
seven substitutes as a reward for his recent fine
form in the Under-21s.
United headed into this clash unbeaten in 13 visits
to the Stadium of Light and with the teams in the
top four facing off on Sunday, the Reds knew it
was an opportunity to close the gap. However, the
quest for a crucial victory got off to the worst
possible start after just three minutes.
After Patrick van Aanholt was blocked by Matteo
Darmian, Khazri's resulting left-wing free-kick
evaded everyone, including De Gea, and nestled in
off the far post to give the Black Cats a surprise
lead. It was the French-born Tunisian
international's first goal for the Black Cats
following his arrival in the January transfer window.
Minutes later Jermain Defoe battled with Chris
Smalling in the area and the United central
defender's block was crucial in preventing a second
goal for the hosts. Danger-man Khazri's fierce
strike then inadvertently hit Schneiderlin on the
arm, before he curled his effort over De Gea's
crossbar.
That second scare seemed to spark the Reds into
life and a succession of United corners followed
before Wayne Rooney found Juan Mata, who
opened the scoring in the 1-1 draw here last
season, but his effort was straight at Vito
Mannone.
Love's heart must have skipped a beat when he
was called off the substitutes' bench midway
through the first half for his first-team debut
in replace of the injured Matteo Darmian and
United's equaliser immediately followed. Mata's
low effort was saved by Mannone, but the rebound
fell to Martial who delicately dinked the ball over
the big Sunderland stopper from an acute angle to
send the sides in level at the break.

HALF-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Sunderland 31% United 69%
SHOTS: Sunderland 8 United 5
SHOTS ON TARGET: Sunderland 1 United 3
CORNERS: Sunderland 0 United 5

Sunderland started the second half as they did the
first with a succession of set-plays, one of which
seemed to strike Rooney on the hand, before Defoe
was denied his seventh goal in as many games as
Daley Blind brilliantly blocked from close range.
On the hour mark the hosts went close to regaining
the lead as a quick counter attack sent Dame
N'Doye one-on-one with De Gea, but the United
number one saved well with his feet.
De Gea was busy again as he held onto Khazri's
25-yard direct free-kick, whilst at the other end,
substitute Memphis was looking to celebrate his
22nd birthday with an immediate impact after
coming on for Jesse Lingard and he nearly served
up a gift for Mata but the Spaniard's shot was well
blocked by substitute Jack Rodwell.
Kone forced De Gea into an acrobatic save, whilst
Mata, who was heavily involved throughout, fired
straight at Mannone.
The Reds continued to press for the winner as
Smalling latched onto Rooney's deep cross, but his
header was diverted wide. Kone however would not
waste his opportunity as his header into the ground
from Kazri's corner seemed to hit De Gea and find
its way into the net for what will sadly go down as
an own goal.
United continued to press, this time to salvage a
point and despite Memphis testing Mannone again
late on, the Reds lost at the Stadium of Light for
the first time in the Premier League.

FULL-TIME STATS
POSSESSION: Sunderland 34% United 66%

SHOTS: Sunderland 21 United 12

SHOTS ON TARGET: Sunderland 5 United 6
CORNERS: Sunderland 5 United 8

THE TEAMS
Sunderland: Mannone, Yedlin, O’Shea, Kone, van
Aanholt, Kirchhoff (Rodwell 15'), Cattermole
(Toivonen 85'), M’Vila, Khazri, N’Doye, Defoe
(Borini 71').
Subs not used: Brown, Matthews, Pickford,
Honeyman.
Booked: Yedlin, O'Shea

United: De Gea, Darmian (Love 38'), Smalling, Blind,
Borthwick-Jackson, Schneiderlin (Keane 86'),
Carrick, Lingard (Memphis 61'), Mata, Martial,
Rooney.
Subs not used: Romero, Weir, Pereira, Herrera.
Booked: Rooney, Mata, Carrick

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Sunderland Vs Man Utd

PREVIEW: SUNDERLAND V
MANCHESTER UNITED

How to follow the match: Saturday’s 12:45 GMT
kick-off will be broadcast live in the UK on BT Sport
1. Fans can also follow the action via
ManUtd.com’s match blog and the club’s Twitter
account @ManUtd . MUTV's Match Day Live
programme starts at 12:00 GMT and the club’s
official channel will show the full game at 18:00
GMT on Sunday.

Scene-setter : Louis van Gaal's men will be looking
to respond after a late goal denied the Reds
victory at Chelsea last weekend. Currently six
points off the top four, the United boss will be
hoping to close that gap with a win against the
struggling Black Cats, who sit 19th in the table .
Sam Allardyce's side will have been buoyed by a
credible draw at Liverpool last weekend, but have
plenty of work to do if they are to secure their top-
flight status for another year.

Form guide : United have lost just one of the last
nine games and are unbeaten in 13 previous league
trips to the Stadium of Light. The sides drew 1-1 in
last season's corresponding fixture, but the Reds
had claimed victories on the three trips to
Wearside before that. On an individual level, Wayne
Rooney has scored seven goals in eight
appearances since the turn of the year and netted
three times against Allardyce's side last season.
The skipper’s seven-goal tally against the Black
Cats is the most by any United player in the
Premier League era. Meanwhile, Jesse Lingard will
be hoping to score the Reds' opening goal for the
third game in a row, after netting against Stoke City
and Chelsea.

Latest team news : Will Keane has been named in
the travelling squad for Wearside. Adnan
Januzaj and Guillermo Varela are both unavailable
after limping out of the Under-21s' 7-0 thrashing of
Norwich City on Monday while Phil Jones also
sustained a knock. The game is also likely to come
too soon for Ashley Young and Bastian
Schweinsteiger . Marcos Rojo and Antonio
Valencia are closing on a return, while Luke Shaw
is still out. The home side are without Younes
Kaboul, Sebastian Larsson, Jeremain Lens and
Duncan Watmore while Adam Johnson has had his
contract terminated.

View from the dressing room: Michael Carrick says
his side need to battle on after last week’s
Stamford Bridge disappointment. "There is plenty
to play for this month and of course plenty of
points to play for in the league. We’re not giving
anything up just yet," he said on Tuesday.

"We
have to battle on through, keep going and play
something like we have been doing over the last
few weeks and then see where it takes us."

View from the opposition : Sunderland goalkeeper
Vito Mannone thinks his side’s precarious league
position makes Saturday’s clash very important. "In
the last three weeks, no matter who we’re playing
we want to get three points; we want the three
points (on Saturday)," he told the club’s official
website.

Danger men : After six months in the MLS, Jermain
Defoe has managed to recapture the form that
once made him one of England’s hottest strikers.
The 33-year-old has averaged a goal a game this
year and will be crucial to any success the hosts
may have if he is deemed fit to feature on
Saturday. January arrival Wahib Khazri has
impressed in his two Sunderland appearances thus
far, providing a slick assist for the former in last
weekend’s Anfield draw.

Betting : Club partners Marathonbet price United as
odds-on favourites to take the three points at
39/50, while Sunderland are deemed long-shots at
43/10 and the draw is available at 139/50. You can
get odds of 79/20 on Rooney adding to his previous
successes against the hosts with the opening goal,
and 44/5 on Lingard netting the opener for the third
consecutive game. Visit Marathonbet's website for
more offers .

Referee : Andre Marriner will take charge of his first
United match since last season's visit to Everton.
The West Midlands official has sent off seven
Sunderland players in his last 17 games involving
the Black Cats and presided over their 6-2 defeat
at Goodison Park earlier in the season, as well as
last term's 8-0 caning at Southampton. United have
lost four of the last five games he has overseen.

Rivals watch : The top four all face off against each
other on Sunday, with Leicester City visiting
Arsenal and Manchester City hosting Tottenham
Hotspur. Liverpool travel to Aston Villa on the
same day.

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Chlesea vs Man Utd Match Report

REPORT: CHELSEA 1
MANCHESTER UNITED 1

Barclays Premier League | 7 February 2016 |
Stamford Bridge | Att: 41,434 | Scorers: Lingard 61',
Costa 91'
Manchester United secured an entertaining 1-1
draw at champions Chelsea on Sunday, although
one point could easily have been three for Louis
van Gaal's unfortunate Reds.
Jesse Lingard scored the biggest goal of his
flourishing career with a superb effort that flew
past the impressive Thibaut Courtois, but a
potential victory was cruelly taken away by Diego
Costa's 91st-minute leveller. The result leaves
United fifth in the Barclays Premier League and six
points behind fourth-placed Manchester City, yet
the spirit that underpinned this performance
suggests progress can be made.
Louis van Gaal named an unchanged XI after
admitting he “did not have an argument” to rotate
following the convincing 3-0 win over Stoke City in
midweek. The manager will have been pleased by
his team’s start, too, after the Reds earned six
corners in the opening 20 minutes and registered
three shots on target through Cameron Borthwick-
Jackson, Michael Carrick and Anthony Martial.
The vociferous Costa, making his first career
appearance against United, headed over for
Chelsea on 26 minutes and Nemanja Matic nodded
at goal to force a fine save from David De Gea
moments later. Costa and Oscar also missed the
target from inside the penalty area just after the
half-hour mark as the first half became much more
competitive following a one-sided opening.
Marouane Fellaini lost his marker to head wide of
the left post on 40 minutes before an excellent
cross from the industrious Matteo Darmian rolled
across the entire six-yard area without anybody
obliging the invitation to score past a stranded
Thibaut Courtois. Daley Blind then survived a late
penalty scare in the closing seconds when his hand
collided with a John Terry shot from eight yards.

MATCH STATS AT HALF-TIME
POSSESSION: Chelsea 39% United 61%
SHOTS: Chelsea 6 United 8
SHOTS ON TARGET: Chelsea 1 United 3
CORNERS: Chelsea 3 United 10

Wayne Rooney began the second half by heading
tamely at goal from a Lingard cross, but the in-
form captain mustered a much more dangerous
effort shortly afterwards when his low strike from
around 20 yards was clawed away by Courtois.
After Martial had dragged a shot wide, the Belgian
goalkeeper was required again to parry Lingard’s
guided effort before blocking Rooney’s follow-up.
The match was temporarily halted on 55 minutes
when young Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma suffered
a serious-looking injury when landing from an aerial
challenge that forced him to be stretchered off.
United scored upon the restart and in brilliant
fashion as Lingard superbly turned on the ball
inside the penalty area and shot into the top
corner, opening the scoring for the second time in
a week following his headed effort against Stoke in
midweek. It was the 23-year-old's fourth strike in
19 senior outings this season.
The strong right hand of De Gea maintained
United’s clean sheet on 67 minutes, when he
displayed his enduring class by pushing a powerful
volley from Branislav Ivanovic over the crossbar.
The Spain international then denied his compatriot
Cesc Fabregas with another outstanding save, this
time using both hands to parry a thumping close-
range effort away from the top corner.
United fought for the win but frustratingly
conceded in the first of six added minutes, when
Costa latched on to a Fabregas pass to round De
Gea and finish into a empty net, salvaging a point
for Chelsea. The powerful striker almost bagged a
winner just seconds later with a low shot that was
saved once again by De Gea, whose performance
was unquestionably crucial to what was eventually
a hard-fought draw.

MATCH STATS AT FULL-TIME
POSSESSION: Chelsea 49% United 51%
SHOTS: Chelsea 15 United 17
SHOTS ON TARGET: Chelsea 4 United 7
CORNERS: Chelsea 9 United 11

THE TEAMS
Chelsea: Courtois, Ivanovic, Zouma (Cahill 59’),
Terry, Azpilicueta, Mikel, Matic (Pedro 67'), Willian,
Fabregas, Oscar (Hazard 54’), Diego Costa.
Subs not used: Begovic, Baba Rahman, Loftus-
Cheek, Traore.

United: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Blind,
Borthwick-Jackson, Fellaini (Schneiderlin 78'),
Carrick, Lingard (Memphis 86'), Mata (Herrera 94'),
Martial, Rooney.
Subs not used: Romero, McNair, Varela, Pereira.
Booked: Blind, Smalling

MATCH REACTION

Van Gaal: "I think we played a superb game until
the last quarter. We did not keep the ball and we
did not play the attack in the way I think we have
to do. We were unlucky that we got the goal
against us, it was unbelievable. We did not reward
ourselves."

Mata: “We played very good football. Coming here
to Chelsea isn’t easy, but particularly in the first 30
minutes and in the second half we played well –
we had it so close. But Chelsea were always
pushing and they scored a late goal and we didn’t
have any time to get another goal. It’s frustrating.”

Lingard: "We played the majority of the game well,
and to concede so late feels like a defeat. We’ve
got to move onto the next game now. The goal
was just instinct to turn and hit it. I was glad that
it went in but it was the three points that we
wanted."

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Man Utd Vs Stoke Results

MANCHESTER UNITED 3 STOKE
CITY 0

Barclays Premier League | 2 February 2016 | Old
Trafford | Attendance: 75,234 | Scorers: Lingard 14',
Martial 23', Rooney 53'

The current crop of Manchester United players
scored three goals the Busby Babes would have
been proud of as the Reds sealed an impressive
3-0 win over Stoke City.
On a night when the club remembered the Munich
Air Disaster of 1958 with various tributes, Louis van
Gaal's men - wearing black armbands - produced a
suitably exciting performance. A couple of fine
first-half finishes, from Jesse Lingard and Anthony
Martial, put United in the driving seat at the break,
before Wayne Rooney added an excellent third
soon after the restart and edged just five goals
behind Sir Bobby Charlton’s long-standing club
record.
Van Gaal made two changes to the side that beat
Derby County in the FA Cup with the fit-again
Matteo Darmian returning at right-back, in place of
Guillermo Varela, who moved to the bench, and
Michael Carrick coming in for Morgan Schneiderlin
who was also named amongst the substitutes.
Before the game, fans gathered together at Old
Trafford's Munich memorial, ahead of Saturday’s
58th anniversary, to pay their respects to the 23
people - including eight players - who perished
after the air crash on 6 February 1958. And it was
fitting that two of the club’s current Academy
graduates linked up to give United the lead after 14
minutes. Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, a nominee in
ManUtd.com’s January Player of the Month poll
and also celebrating his 19th birthday, fizzed in an
inviting cross from left and Lingard was at the back
post to head home with ease.
Just as he had done against Derby in the Cup,
Martial was causing havoc for defenders and he
thrashed a low drive into the side-netting soon
after. Another effort, straight at Jack Butland,
followed, before he finally hit the jackpot on 23
minutes with the finish for arguably United’s goal
of the season so far.
A move that started on the edge of the Reds' own
box and involved Lingard, Carrick, Darmian, Juan
Mata and Rooney ended up with a quite sublime
curling shot into the top corner from the Reds’ in-
form French striker.
Bar little pieces of possession in the opening
period, Stoke, who actually shaded the possession
stats at the break, offered little as an attacking
threat, but Mark Hughes’ men are always a danger
from set-pieces and a corner 11 minutes from the
break almost gave them a lifeline. But when the
ball dropped to Jonathan Walters six yards out he
hooked the effort over the bar.
The Reds, who looked strong as an attacking unit
throughout the first period, had a chance to grab
another before the break when Darmian made
space and crossed for the unmarked Mata, who
had popped up in some dangerous positions across
the opening 45 minutes, but his header was off
target.

HALF-TIME STATS
Possession: United 47% Stoke 53%
Shots: United 12 Stoke 6
Shots on target: United 4 Stoke 0
Corners: United 2 Stoke 3
The second half started in the same vein as the
first, with Stoke enjoying some decent possession,
but the Reds having the better openings. One of
those fell to Rooney, who fired home on 50 minutes
after a shoulder-charge with Glen Johnson, but
referee Roger East, with a very late whistle, blew
up for a foul.
The skipper would not be denied three minutes
later though after another free-flowing break
involving Mata and Martial. The former found the
latter and his cross was side-footed in from close
range by Rooney, earning him his seventh goal in
seven games in 2016 and his 244th overall for
United.
That goal effectively killed the contest with little to
report on thereafter in terms of clear-cut chances,
apart from an angled shot from substitute Memphis
Depay, but it mattered little after the impressive
work the Reds had done up to that point which
secured a deserved and welcome victory.

FULL-TIME STATS
Possession : United 47% Stoke 53%
Shots: United 15 Stoke 10
Shots on target: United 5 Stoke 0
Corners: United 2 Stoke 5

Teams
United: De Gea; Darmian, Smalling, Blind,
Borthwick-Jackson; Fellaini (Herrera 80), Carrick,
Lingard, Mata (Pereira 88), Martial (Memphis 79);
Rooney.
Subs not used: Romero, McNair, Varela,
Schneiderlin.
Booked: Darmian, Martial.

Stoke City : Butland, Johnson, Wollscheid (Bardsley
30), Muniesa, Pieters, Whelan, Afellay, Walters,
Bojan (Ireland 60), Arnautovic, Crouch.

Subs not
used: Haugaard, Odemwingie, Joselu, Diouf, Shaqiri.
Booked: Ireland.

MATCH REACTION
"I am a happy coach. When you see how we
created the goals with fantastic play building up
from the back and finishing, that’s what I like." -
Louis van Gaal

“We’re over the moon. As soon as we got the first
goal, we were confident of getting a second and
third. The early goal was massive. It settles the
fans, the manager and ourselves down." - Jesse
Lingard

" I’m really happy with the result and the three
points. We put in a really good performance. Now
we need to keep this level up." - David De Gea

REDS ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Anthony Martial (@AnthonyMartial) - Great result
tonight.

Morgan Schneiderlin (@SchneiderlinMo4) - Great
performance for the #flowersofmanchester.
Congratulations to Jesse, @AnthonyMartial &
@WayneRooney for the goals! #MUFC

Daley Blind (@BlindDaley) - Great result tonight,
some brilliant goals!! #MUFC

Marouane Fellaini (@Fellaini) - 3-0 strong team
performance!! #MUFC

Antonio Valencia (@anto_v25) - Congratulations to
my mates! You made a great match! #Vamos
@ManUtd @ManUtd_Es

Bastian Schweinsteiger (@BSchweinsteiger) -
Amazing scenes at Old Trafford tonight. Congrats
on this strong performance, @ManUtd! #mufc

Ashley Young (@youngy18) - Good win and
performance by the boys tonight #mufc

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United's Buisness In January

MANCHESTER UNITED'S JANUARY
INS AND OUTS

With the transfer window open again in January,
there have been several moves involving
Manchester United.
In order to check the latest deals, this page will be
updated with any activity of an incoming or
outgoing nature.

INS

Adnan Januzaj - loan return from Borussia
Dortmund
The Belgium international is back with the Reds
following a temporary stint in the Bundesliga.

Sam Johnstone - loan return from Preston North
End
The goalie headed back to United with Anders
Lindegaard snapped up by the Championship side.

Will Keane - loan return from Preston North End
The 2011 FA Cup Youth Cup winner rejoined the
fold after plenty of game time at Deepdale.

Donald Love - loan return from Wigan Athletic
The final game of the defender's agreed spell was
the win over Gillingham on Thursday.

Joel Pereira - loan return from Rochdale
The promising keeper was brought back, initially to
cover for the loan exit of Sam Johnstone.

OUTS

Victor Valdes - loan to Standard Liege
The 34-year-old goalkeeper moved to Belgium.

Ashley Fletcher - loan to Barnsley
A first move away from United was clinched for
the Yorkshire-born striker on a month's basis.

Liam Grimshaw - undisclosed fee to Preston North
End
The versatile midfielder was snapped up by Simon
Grayson after impressing in Scotland.

Dean Henderson - loan to Stockport County
The 18-year-old switched to the Conference North
club on a youth loan, initially for a month.

Sam Johnstone - loan to Preston North End
After an enjoyable spell at his hometown club, he
was re-signed to replace Sunderland's Jordan
Pickford.

Kieran O'Hara - loan to Morecambe
A second stay with the Shrimps was arranged for
the teenage keeper, who will remain with the
League Two side for the season.

Ben Pearson - undisclosed fee to Preston North
End
Following one Under-21 outing on his return from
Barnsley, the midfielder signed a two-and-a-half
year deal at Deepdale.

Nick Powell - loan to Hull City
The forward linked up with Steve Bruce's Tigers on
the final day of the January transfer window.

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