EPL 2016/17: Crystal Palace 1-2 Manchester United - 5 Talking Points
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s late winner sealed an important victory for Manchester United in a dramatic and controversial game against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
Paul Pogba earned the lead for the visitors, controversially scoring from an offside position after Ibrahimovic appeared to punch the ball in his direction. James McArthur finished off a terrific team move by Palace to draw them level before Ibrahimovic broke Eagles’ fans’ hearts with an 88th-minute winner from a perfectly floated Paul Pogba pass.
Also read: Crystal Palace 1-2 Manchester United: Player Ratings
Here are the talking points from an entertaining game at London:
#1 United dominate proceedings in the first half, but leave it late to break the deadlock
The opening 45 minutes described United’s season in a nutshell – dominate possession, create chances through the fullbacks but ultimately fail to deliver the finish. Zlatan Ibrahimovic did well dropping deep to pick out aerial balls, but that often left a void in the box, which Rooney had to fill on most occasions.
Crystal Palace, on the other hand, barely provided an attacking threat. They were short on possession and had just Christian Benteke as a realistic target when they got forward. In-form Wilfried Zaha was played out of position as a support striker for Benteke through the middle, eliminating any threat from the wing positions.
It finally paid off for Jose Mourinho’s side in first-half stoppage time, when Paul Pogba – arguably United’s best player on the pitch in the half – scored with the last kick of the half to give United a controversial, yet deserved lead.