Norwich City 1-2 Manchester United: 5 Talking Points as Red Devils secure stunning last-gasp victory in extra-time | FA Cup 2019-20
A scrappy Harry Maguire goal three minutes from time sent Manchester United into the semi-final of the FA Cup, as they beat a disheartened Norwich City 2-1 in extra time.
Odion Ighalo opened the scoring for the Red Devils, only for the lead to be cancelled out by a wonderful strike from Todd Cantwell. Just when it looked like Norwich would see out the constant bombarding of deliveries from the Red Devils, skipper Maguire popped up to break the Canaries' hearts.
It was a rather sluggish contest between the two, defined by loose passes, struggle to find an out-ball and ordinary finishing.
Nevertheless, the victory was all that mattered for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who will now prepare his team for a semi-final showdown in Wembley.
On that note, we analyse the major talking points from Manchester United's victory over Norwich City.
#1 Solskjaer's shuffled unit takes time to settle
Solskjaer made no fewer than eight changes to the Manchester United starting XI, with alterations in every part of the field.
Sergio Romero, a regular feature for the Red Devils in cup competitions, started in goal. Club captain Harry Maguire and Eric Bailly formed the heart of the defence, while Diogo Dalot came in for Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Paul Pogba, who starred in the 3-0 win over Sheffield United, was rested. Scott McTominay and Fred started as the holding midfielders, with Bruno Fernades retaining his spot as the number 10.
Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard were plotted down the flanks, while hat-trick hero Anthony Martial paved the way for Odion Ighalo.
As a result of the same, United found it difficult to get into the game or stitch together any meaningful passage of play early on. In fact, it was Norwich City doing all the talking early on with possession. There was undoubtedly a lack of cohesion in United's build-up play.
#2 Norwich set Manchester United up on the counter
The Canaries began on the front foot, but Manchester United settled into the game later on and controlled most of it.
Daniel Farke's side assembled in large numbers, blocking channels in between the defenders and sticking to narrow positions in order to disallow the likes of Fernandes and Mata from playing around them.
There was absolutely nothing wrong in opting for that type of a gameplan, but Norwich never really found any players attacking the six-yard box.
Time and time again, Emiliano Buendia and Todd Cantwell broke away along with the ever-so-willing Norwich full-backs, but could hardly pick out Teemu Pukki or Lukas Rupp in dangerous areas.
Not only did they misplace their final balls, but also had fingers to point at the forwards for not attacking the gaps between the Manchester United centre-halves.
#3 Manchester United lacked the pace and movement
As expected, the likes of Fred and Fernandes had most of the ball whenever Manchester United drove forward. The latter was lively once again, with little flicks and one-twos around the Norwich City players.
With Mata, a player who certainly has lost pace with age and Lingard, who is far from the quickest around, there was a visible lack of urgency in United's game.
Mata and Lingard involved themselves in the passing and probing, but couldn't outpace a packed Norwich defence.
The confidence levels were raised after the opening goal, but more so when Nemanja Matic came on to shield the effervescent midfield duo of Pogba and Fernandes.
The visitors certainly looked like a shadow of the team that beat Sheffield United earlier this week without the likes of Marcus Rashford and Martial.
Even the Ighalo goal was rather scrappy, as Norwich City gifted a goal to the visitors with some below-par defending inside the box.
#4 Klose and Cantwell characterise Norwich's season
Twenty-four minutes after the Ighalo goal, just when it looked like Manchester United would see out the game, Todd Cantwell let fly from distance to score the leveller. Romero was to blame for being flat-footed and reacting slowly, but it was an absolute pile-driver from the youngster.
It was indeed a moment of inspiration, highlighting the fearlessness Farke has engrained within the setup. Norwich have certainly shown some promise, but defensive porosity and injuries have rocked them horribly.
On the contrary, Timm Klose's performance was synonymous to the shoddy defending Norwich have been guilty of this season.
Firstly, he was at fault for the lack of communication during Ighalo's goal. What was supposed to be a straightforward clearance, turned out to be a simple finish for the Nigerian.
Further, Klose was in no man's land when Fernandes flicked the ball on to Ighalo. He was on the wrong side of the striker, grabbing and twisting him even before he received the ball.
Poor decision-making, schoolboy errors and tactical frailties at the back have underlined Norwich City's season. Klose's performance was not too different, as he received his marching orders and put his team on the backfoot.
#5 Sustained pressure paid off for Manchester United
After making a host of changes, it finally looked like the strongest Manchester United team was on the pitch.
They launched attack after attack, recycled possession and flooded bodies into the box for crosses. Fernandes and Pogba took charge of the deeper roles, with the centre-backs and forwards manning the box.
Right from the start of the second half of extra time, the Red Devils darted forward in numbers and maintained close to 90% possession.
Another case of horrendous defending and the simple error of not being able to clear the ball cost them dearly, as Maguire slotted past the in-form Krul to score the winner.
Manchester United's persistence paid dividends, as they dug deeper and secured a deserved victory in extra time.
Also Read: Manchester United 3-0 Sheffield United: 5 Talking Points as Martial inspires Red Devils to routine victory | Premier League 2019-20