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Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw against Real Sociedad in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League round of 16 clash.
While Man United were the better side on the night, a hand ball by Bruno Fernandes gave the home side a penalty that robbed the visitors of what should have been a deserved victory.
United had a slow start to the match, struggling to progress into their opponents’ half and instead passing around within their own third while the hosts kept up the pressure.
Joshua Zirkzee managed to make a promising break, putting a through ball to Rasmus Hojlund on the left whose pass into the box was cut out by the Sociedad defence.
Hojlund made another promising run into the box, winning United a corner. However, Fernandes’s cross was easily dealt with by the defence.
Next up was Alejandro Garnacho, who burst into the box and took a decent shot to force a save from goalkeeper Alex Remiro.
Diogo Dalot found his way into the box in the 18th minute, cutting back to Garnacho in the centre whose sight of goal was blocked. He laid the ball off to Patrick Dorgu, whose long-range effort soared over the crossbar.
27 minutes in, it appeared as if United’s injury woes were about to get worse. Dorgu collapsed after 27 minutes, clutching at his knee. Fortunately, he was able to rise to his feet soon after, allowing the coaching staff to breathe a collective sigh of relief.
Nine minutes before the break, Dalot passed the ball to Fernandes in the centre, whose shot was blocked. Dorgu collected the rebound on the left, popping the ball to Joshua Zirkzee whose shot was kept out as well. Suddenly, United looked threatening on the attack.
Five minutes later, Fernandes lobbed a soaring cross into the box which Dalot headed goalwards, only for the keeper to save.
During three minutes of added time, the hosts won two corners, but United’s defence held steady. The game remained goalless and both teams headed down the tunnel for half-time.
Manager Ruben Amorim clearly needed to find a way to galvanise his attack in the second half. After all, it was United who had the lion’s share of goalscoring chances.
Soon after the restart, Sociedad were on the move. Takefusa Kubo darted down the flank, crossing to Mikel Oyarzabal only for Matthijs de Ligt to brilliantly cut out the pass.
51 minutes in, it was United who upped the pressure. Zirkzee flicked the ball forward to Dorgu, who crossed the ball toward the back post. While Garnacho was in position, he fired his shot into the side netting.
Two minutes later, United were on the attack again. Dalot cut the ball back to Garnacho in the centre, whose shot from the edge of the box was too soft to challenge the keeper.
55 minutes in, Bruno Fernandes received a yellow card for dissent. He complained to the referee after feeling he was fouled, yet the ref did not halt play.
In the 57th minute, United finally found the breakthrough they deserved. In a quick counter-attack, Garnacho cut the ball back to Zirkzee in the centre of the park. With a sublime one-touch finish, Zirkzee thumped the ball from the edge of the box into the back of the net to propel United into the lead.
62 minutes in, Fernandes passed the ball to Hojlund in the box, who in turn laid the ball off to Garnacho who came in from the right. The winger’s shot was fired into the side netting.
Over five minutes later, the referee made his way to the touchline following a VAR review. Fernandes was adjudged to have handled the ball in the area, resulting in a penalty for Sociedad.
Captain Oyarzabal sent Onana the wrong way to level the scoreline. United surely must have felt hard done by, having clearly been the better team up to that point.
77 minutes in, Onana made a spectacular diving save to deny Brais Mendes from distance. Corner to Sociedad. Fortunately for United, the ball floated out for a goal kick, putting an end to the danger.
With 12 minutes left to play, Amorim made his first substitution of the match. Christian Eriksen came on to replace Garnacho.
In the 83rd minute, Sociedad caught United off guard. Orri Oskarsson raced into the box, beating the United defenders only to blast his close-range shot wide of the target. It was a stroke of luck for United, who had no chance of stopping the young striker.
Three minutes from time, Toby Collyer and Victor Lindelof came on for Leny Yoro and Zirkzee.
Five minutes of stoppage time were announced, providing United with enough time to find a late winner.
Two minutes from time, Onana produced another critical save when Oskarsson shot from close range.
Sadly, Amorim’s men were unable to find a winner, missing out on the victory they so deserved. Still, an away draw at this point in the competition is valuable, especially with United set to host the Spanish club next week as they look to progress in the Europa League.
Starting XI: Onana, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Fernandes, Hojlund, Zirkzee, Dorgu, Yoro, Garnacho, Casemiro, DalotSubs: Eriksen, Collyer, Lindelof
Featured image Ion Alcoba Beitia via Getty Images
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