Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford scored late on to give Manchester United a 2-0 victory over Leeds United in the Premier League on Sunday.
Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford scored late on to give Manchester United a 2-0 victory over Leeds United in the Premier League on Sunday.
In a fierce first half between the Roses rivals, chances were few and far between. Crysencio Summerville came close twice for Leeds, and Bruno Fernandes missed the best chance for the visitors.
In the 80th minute, Rashford scored his 21st goal of the season in all competitions to finally break Leeds’ resistance. Erik ten Hag’s team struggled to break down the persistent hosts.
With the score tied, gaps began to appear, and Garnacho, a substitute, capitalized to end the game five minutes later by racing clear before scoring.
United jumped ahead of their rivals into second place after playing two more games than champion Manchester City on Sunday. Leeds remained in 17th place, one point above the drop zone.
David de Gea, the goalkeeper for Manchester United, stated to Sky Sports, “You saw how much it meant at the end of the game.”
“The players and the fans. We should have won at home, and we did today. Great game; we knew we would win if we kept a clean sheet, so we did. As a team, we persevered until the very end.”
After only playing to a thrilling 2-2 draw at Old Trafford four days earlier, the two teams were familiar with one another, and the intensity levels did not decrease for the rematch at Elland Road.
The final pass was the main difference between the games, as Ten Hag’s team struggled to create any noteworthy openings while Leeds started well.
Summerville missed an early opportunity in the penalty area and was denied by a smart save from De Gea in the United goal just before the break. Summerville should have done better.
After Summerville was stopped, Fernandes got through on goal after Max Wober made an error, but Illan Meslier stopped the Portuguese with a leg.
The second half was still close. After the break, Leeds made a lot of halftime chances, and the visitors’ Diogo Dalot hit the crossbar with a thunderous effort.
However, for the second time this season, his team was rescued by a single player. Rashford, an England international, made no mistake with a bullet header after Luke Shaw’s cross was inch-perfect.
The game-winning second was created by Garnacho’s speed, and the Argentine teenager scored with precision.
This is Leeds’ longest Premier League losing streak since 1997 when they went 10 games without a victory.
Michael Skubala, caretaker coach for Leeds, stated, “I am really proud of the group.” We did a good job, but we didn’t get anything out of the game.
“That’s one moment of class from Rashford,” “I think top players at the top level can change games.”