Manchester United 2-2 Aston Villa: 3 reasons why the Red Devils drew at home
Manchester United hosted Aston Villa at home on Sunday, desperately in search of a win as that would give them an advantage over the other teams in the race for fifth spot in the Premier League. On the other hand, Aston Villa came into the match on the back of some mixed results and were merely looking for some consistency.
Aston Villa started the first half of the game on the front foot, looking more likely to score the first goal of the match than United. That ended up being true as Aston Villa's playmaker and team captain Jack Grealish netted the first with a fine finish from the tightest of the angles.
For most of the match, the Red Devils seemed to be lacking decisiveness in the final third. They finally got their act together to equalize in the 42nd minute through a header by Marcus Rashford.
United carried the momentum into the second half and took the lead through a corner netted in by Victor Lindelof. But Aston Villa didn't give up and equalized through a Tyrone Ming shot in the 66th minute.
After that both sides constantly tried to get the winner, but were unsuccessful and had to settle for a draw. Here are three reasons why United failed to get the win on Sunday:
#3 Jack Grealish and his stunning goal
Aston Villa's skipper Jack Grealish had a stunning impact on the game. He was a constant menace for the Red Devils defense, and his early strike carried the team the entire match.
The goal he scored was a brilliant one too. Grealish got the ball from a cross by Anwar El Ghazi on the left wing. He then created space for the shot by drawing Andreas Pereira to the ball before cutting inside on his right foot to score a top corner goal that was unstoppable even for David de Gea.
The ease with which he was allowed to score the goal gave Aston Villa the confidence and belief to go forward and win the match at Old Trafford. That sense of belief was reflected when Tyrone Mings equalized just two minutes after Manchester United took the lead in the game.
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