Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-0 Manchester United
Vítor Pereira made it two wins from two with Wolverhampton Wanderera as Bruno Fernandes received his third red card of the season for hapless Manchester United at Molineux.
Fernandes was shown red - for two bookable offences - in the second half with the match goalless, after which Matheus Cunha’s direct corner put Wolves on the road to victory that was sealed by Hwang Hee-Chan with almost the last kick.
Much of the first half was evenly contested, with the highly-anticipated quick pace reflected of each manager’s approach to the game. As proceedings neared the interval, Wolves began to impose themselves more and edge the physical battle, showing increased impetus compared to the team Pereira’s inherited earlier this month.
Yet the crucial moment of the match arrived within two minutes of the re-start. Bruno Fernandes, who earned a cheap yellow card with a petulant trip in the first half, drew a second caution for another late attempt on Nélson Semedo in the 47th minute. Some may argue the second booking was a harsh way to be dismissed, but for the third time in this campaign United’s skipper saw red.
Wolves upped the pressure and ran out comfortable winners thanks to Cunha’s strike from a corner and Hee-Chan’s clincher. After the match, Pereira admitted he was pleased by the impact on the players since his arrival in the West Midlands ahead of last weekend’s 3-0 win at Leicester Cty.
“I’m very happy to make the supporters happy and to see the true spirit of this team," Pereira said. "How have I approached it with the players? Confidence. A man with confidence can do a lot of good things. If you don’t have confidence in yourself, it will be a problem because you cannot express the power that you have inside.
“In this moment I think that the team is happy. The energy is a positive energy. We improved the tactical situation a little bit and I think today the players showed they have quality. Fernandes’ red card? I like to play 11v11 and I appreciate Bruno Fernandes a lot. But this is football. We needed to keep our emotional balance on the pitch and we felt that it was our moment to score. They showed that they wanted to win the game, not only draw but win the game.
“[The end of the game was amazing] our supporters are amazing. The Premier League is the best in the world, and we feel this different energy. It’s like I want another game to enjoy. I know it’s not possible to win every game, but I want to see my team competing until the last minutes."
Amorim blunt on Rashford ommision
Amorim’s post match interview gained headlines for his response to a question about Marcus Rashford’s continued absence from the United squad. Asked whether Rashford has shown enough in recent training sessions to earn a recall, Amorin responded by saying: “If he’s not here, you can make your mind [up]….”
Reflecting on the match Amorim, who did not acknowledge Bruno Fernandes as the Portuguese midfielder left the field, told the BBC: “It was two different parts, because we played 45 minutes without one man. It was tough for us. We didn’t suffer a lot of chances. Even with ten men we were near the goal in the second half, but again set pieces changed the game and it became a little harder.
“In the first half I think we controlled, sometimes we lost the ball and Wolves made some transitions, but we were in control. We had maybe a little lack of aggressivity in the last third, but we controlled the game. And then in the second half we had to change some things, then the player sent off was really hard for us. We tried, sometimes not with the best idea, but we tried until the end. I felt we were nearer the draw than Wolves were to the second goal."
Wolves, who started José Sá, Nélson Semedo, Toti Gomes and Gonçalo Guedes while bringing Rodrigo Gomes off the bench, moved out of the relegation zone with the victory, capping a dream start for Pereira. For United, who also had Diogo Dalot at left wing-back, the slip down to the embarrassing depths of 14th place, with ominous matches against Newcastle and Liverpool upcoming.
By @SeanGillen9
