United led 42 minutes into the match, but Andros Townsend equalized things just after the hour. In a dramatic twist, Yerry mina’s last effort was ruled out by the officials and both teams had to settle for a point.
This result puts more pressure on Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as United manager. They have scored one point in six games and failed to keep a clean slate in nine league games. It is their worst defensive run for 50 years.
Solskjaer stated that “We could have handled the situation better” in Townsend’s equalizer.
“I thought that we started well. We had high energy and created good opportunities. A fantastic goal was scored. But, in the second half, we didn’t have the cutting edge to score the second, which is crucial in a game such as this.”
Solskjaer made a surprise announcement ahead of the match, dropping Cristiano Ronaldo (and Paul Pogba) to the bench. Martial started despite only two goals in his 24 previous appearances for the club. Rafael Benitez’s Everton were, however, without Dominic Calvert–Lewin and Richarlison due to injury. Alex Iwobi also failed a late fitness check.
Ronaldo scored a 95th-minute winner against Villarreal in midweek’s Champions League. This was his fifth goal in five matches. He was, however, a prominent absentee as Solskjaer rotated the squad after complaining over the fixture scheduling following the club’s success in Europe.
United lost 1-0 to Aston Villa in the league last time, but they started brightly here. Mason Greenwood and Martial both headed wide in the opening ten minutes. The visitors had a chance with Michael Keane, who headed wide before Edinson Cavi saw his powerful header saved by Jordan Pickford.
In a lively first period, Everton was in control of the game. However, Demarai Gray was the last to be threatened by Everton. Bruno Fernandes gave the ball to Martial, who made no mistakes and drove a powerful shot into the net.
On 55 minutes, Jadon Sancho replaced Martial and Ronaldo joined Cavani. Just 10 minutes later, the score was even. Fred was pushed off the ball by Everton’s half-back and the visitors broke. The ball found its way to Townsend, who beat David De Gea with it.
With 20 minutes remaining, Solskjaer brought in Pogba to replace Fred. Ronaldo then attempted to cross the goal line with a shot. Pogba was able to wrangle one over. Mina then scored the goal on 85 minutes. VAR ruled it out as offside.
United tried to win but failed. A disappointed Ronaldo was seen walking down the tunnel at the end of the whistle, as Solskjaer’s team fell back.
Benitez said to the BBC that “We played against an extremely good team. It is not easy to achieve a win here, but we did it well. Although we conceded a late goal, the team’s reaction in the second period was very positive. We are happy with how we played and the final result.
Fernandes, disappointed, said that “we should win this match.” We need to create more opportunities. This kind of goal should not be conceded. This is not the first time we’ve done it. We must learn from our mistakes and make improvements.
“We don’t even look at the league table right now, but we should have more points. We lose points at home, and that is something we shouldn’t do. The Premier League was not satisfied with the performance of these two home games. We must do better if we want to win silverware at the conclusion of the season.”
