Just when it looked like Manchester United had found their mojo again after so long, Michael Olisse’s stunning late free-kick denied Erik Ten Hag’s side a 10th straight win in all competitions and second place in the Premier League. A first-half goal from Bruno Fernandes seemed to provide even more convincing evidence that the club who have been crowned champions of England more than any other can once again be serious title contenders.
With a trip to Arsenal at the Emirates looming on Sunday, United are eight points adrift of the leaders having played a game more. They will know it should be much closer after surrendering their advantage with almost the last kick of the game against a spirited Crystal Palace side who simply refused to back down.
A late yellow card for Casemiro also decided a vital cog midway through the meeting with Arsenal as Marcus Rashford failed to extend his superb run of goals to seven successive appearances and it was Patrick Vieira’s side who celebrated at the end of the game. as it avoided a fourth straight home defeat.
Not since the days of Sir Alex Ferguson have United won 10 in a row in all competitions and this performance showed why they are yet to become genuine contenders, despite all the progress made under Ten Haag. Having led at half-time through a well-constructed goal set up for Fernandes by Christian Eriksen, with his seventh assist of the season, the visitors were unable to press their lead after the break and allowed a determined Palace to claw their way back into the game. While Wout Weghorst showed some promising touches on his debut since arriving on loan from Burnley, United rarely threatened to score again after the heroics of the derby victory over Manchester City on Saturday.
In contrast, Palace have struggled to find their footing since the World Cup break and needed that boost after scoring just once in their last three home matches. American defender Chris Richards was outstanding on his debut, while Jean-Philippe Mateta and Odsson Edouard fitted in well at times in a revamped front line.
It was this combination that almost created Edouard’s first chance in the opening minutes, but the former Celtic striker refused to fire and United immediately warned of the threat they posed on the break through Rashford’s mercurial legs. Palace won this game on the final day of last season in the final act of Ralf Rangnick’s short and forgettable tenure at United, but this time the visitors looked dangerous when winning the ball.
Bruno Fernandes (right) celebrates his goal with Christian Eriksen (left) and Manchester United debutant Wat Weghorst at Selhurst Park. Photo: Matthew Ashton/AMA/Getty Images
Luke Shaw grabbed a chance from half-back after 15 minutes following a great strike from Antoni, before Lisandro Martinez – on his 25th birthday and starting for the first time since winning the World Cup with Argentina – went off for treatment on a head injury and returned with a black bandage wrapped around his head. A moment’s hesitation by Tyreek Mitchell then allowed Anthony to see goal, but the Brazilian’s shot went harmlessly wide.
A few choice words between the ex-Ajax striker and Fernandes after they had passed the cables in one move hinted at some growing frustrations for United and Weghorst should have done better with his first big chance after latching on to Shaw’s pinpoint cross . At the other end, Marc Guehi latched on to Olisset’s free-kick but couldn’t get it on target as Palace found themselves restricted to the occasional foray forward.
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That was until just before half-time when Olise brought down Edouard on the edge of the box and it took a spectacular save from David de Gea to tip the French striker’s shot onto the post. Less than three minutes later, United made them pay when Rashford’s through ball found Christian Eriksen and his cut-back found Fernandez in acres of space to send the ball past Vicente Guaita.
An early booking for Martinez after he was fooled by Olisse’s skills on the touchline early in the second half was a warning that Palace would not go down without a fight and it took a brilliant save from Casemiro to stop Edouard racing over, though to the door. Bringing on Scott McTominay for Weghorst midway through the second half was perhaps an indication that The Hague were happy to protect what they had, and it ended up being a costly approach.
The Scotland midfielder thought there should have been a penalty after going down in the area under a challenge from Richards, but the VAR ruled there had been no contact. It took another sharp save from De Gea to keep out Guehi’s header from Olissez’s corner as Palace piled on the pressure in the closing stages.
United’s defense held firm until Olisset stepped up in the last minute after Jeffrey Schlupp was fouled to curl a gorgeous free-kick off the post that took all the wind out of United’s sails.
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