Premier League 2021-22: Manchester United 1-1 Southampton: 3 Factors which stood out in the match
Manchester United drew 1-1 with Southampton in a Premier League match at Old Trafford in Manchester today. Jadon Sancho scored the opening goal in the 21st minute, but Che Adams got the equalizer for the visitors in the 48th minute.
United is now in the 5th position in the league table with 40 points from 24 matches, whereas Southampton is 10th with 29 points from the same number of matches.
A frantic and enthralling encounter finishes with the points shared
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On that note, we would take a look at the three factors which stood out in today’s match.
#1 Manchester United scored and kept threatening Southampton's goal through counter-attacks in the first half:
Manchester United started their customary 4-2-3-1 formation with Cristiano Ronaldo upfront and Sancho and Marcus Rashford on the flanks. The visitors played with a high defensive line throughout the first half and increased numbers in the opposition half. As a result, the Manchester United forwards got ample space to make their runs at the opposition goal.
Both Bruno Fernandes and Paul Pogba succeeded in winning balls inside their own half and then playing long, forward passes to their forwards. United’s goal in the first half came from such a long pass that Fernandes played to an advancing Rashford on the right flank.
Rashford got the ball and went into the Southampton penalty box before delivering a cross to an onrushing Sancho. The latter made no mistake in tapping the ball home.
Minutes before the goal, Sancho had received another through ball from a counter-attack but could not beat the visiting side's goalkeeper Fraser Forster. Then, moments before half-time, Ronaldo received a long probing ball and succeeded in delivering it to Pogba, who scored, but the goal was ruled out as Ronaldo was in an offside position while receiving the ball.
#2 Southampton played with assertiveness and were the more dominant team in the first half:
Southampton played with assertiveness from the get-go and never shied away from launching attacks at the opposition goal. As mentioned earlier, they played with a high line and had significant numbers upfront. They also exchanged brisk passes in the middle and final third and had shots on goal.
In the end, the visitors finished the first half with around 55% ball possession and more attempts than their opponents. For the first 30-35 minutes, they were more involved in attacks through the right flank and the inside-right channel.
However, they could not deliver quality crosses from the right side and their goal-scoring chances suffered as a result. Moreover, Adams and Stuart Armstrong saw their shots go wide.
As the first half veered towards the end, the visitors started attacking through the left too and Armstrong’s diving volley from a throw-in was saved by David De Gea. Moments later, left-back Romain Perraud moved inside from the left flank to take another shot at Manchester United’s goal that was again saved by De Gea.
#3 Southampton scored in the second half as United were somewhat one-dimensional in their approach:
Southampton were rewarded for their hard work almost as soon as the second half started. Adams got the ball to the edge of the penalty box and beat De Gea to the far corner of the net with a neat grounder. It was Adams’ 7th goal of the current season.
Manchester United was visibly shaken by the equalizer and threw numbers upfront to trouble the Southampton defence. Cristiano Ronaldo and Diego Dalot were denied by Forster, as the Southampton goalkeeper did well to parry the shots from close distance.
However, the home side were one-dimensional in their approach and relied solely on the long through balls behind their opponents' backline. The visitors, however, remained unfazed and kept making vital interceptions near the half-line. Moreover, they also continued to look for another goal, and Armando Broja came close on a few occasions.
Broja managed to get past the Manchester United defenders repeatedly but somehow could not deliver in front of the goal. The visitors could have left the field with all three points if he had been more clinical and brisk in front of goal.
Ralf Rangnick introduced Anthony Elanga and Jessie Lingard in place of Scott McTominay and Rashford, respectively, but Manchester United could not score the match-winner. Oriol Romeu and James Ward-Prowse maintained their composure in the midfield as Southampton went on to score well-deserved points.
It finishes level at Old Trafford.
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