adminMANCHESTER. — Ignore for a moment the fact that this victory may bring forward a date with a dreaded destiny, this was a huge performance, and an even bigger 2-0 win for Manchester United.
Yes, it may have altered the date Liverpool win the league by more than two weeks — to March 21 at home to Crystal Palace if they can win at Goodison Park against Everton the preceding Monday — but this was a significant result for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his players. It is the first season they have done the league double over their city rivals since 2009-10, and only the second time they have beaten them at Old Trafford in the last decade. And it was deserved. City had the bulk of the ball, and laid siege when chasing the game in the second-half, but United defended smartly, impressed on the counter attack and Solskjaer is now getting a tune out of Anthony Martial, whose winner was his fourth goal in five games. Nobody can say he hasn’t filled Marcus Rashford’s shoes in those matches, and credit to Solskjaer and his coaching team for that. Without doubt, Martial has grown in this recent spell.
So desperate were City for their equaliser that, in the final minute of injury time, Ederson — who had a very poor game — completely overcooked a quick, counter-attacking throw intended for Nicolas Otamendi, which fell to Scott McTominay, He struck it first time back towards the unguarded goal, and United had the winning margin their performance deserved. For City, this was another setback, the third time they have lost to United this season — including the second leg Carabao Cup tie — and a result that increases their remoteness from the league leaders. They did enough to equalise in the second-half, when Phil Foden and Nicolas Otamendi came close and Raheem Sterling missed an excellent chances from a Riyad Mahrez cross — Mailonline.
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