After seven rounds of play in the Premier League, Manchester United suffered their first loss of four matches when they were defeated by Crystal Palace away from home by a score of 0-1.
Even though the squad has not won anything in the Premier League in the last ten years, Manchester United is off to the worst start in the competition’s history. This is despite the fact that the club has a rich history in the league. After seven matches, they have been defeated by Tottenham, Arsenal, Brighton, and Crystal Palace a combined total of four times. The “Red Devils” defeated the same opponent in the third round of the Federation Cup four days earlier with relative ease. On the other hand, the visiting team won by fielding their best possible team and driving the home team to detest them.
The decisive moment in the game came in the 25th minute, when Crystal Palace scored an unexpected goal from a predetermined position. This occurred despite the fact that Manchester United started the game in a great manner. Joachim Andersen, a midfielder for the away team, managed to get the ball to column two after the away team had taken a free kick on the right side of the field while the defense for the home team watched. Andersen’s one-touch volley just missed Dalot’s upper-right corner, which sent goalkeeper Andre Onana flying but didn’t prevent the goal from being scored. That ended up being the lone goal scored in the game.
After the goal, Manchester United maintained possession of the ball for 80% of the time and produced many threatening but missed opportunities. In the sixty-first minute of the game, Fernandes sent in a cross from the left side for Hojlund to run in on and get his head on, but goalkeeper Sam Johnstone was able to push it out of the way in time.
Johnstone spent his childhood at the training facility for Manchester United. He was paid by the club from 2011 to 2018, yet he did not appear in a single Premier League game during that time. A moment before, he was responsible for directing Fernandes’ long-range strike into the top corner. The spectators cheered and chanted “United, United” whenever the home team scored a goal.
Man United was also unlucky with the disputed circumstance that occurred in the 59th minute. They had a terrific opportunity when the ball was flying to Rashford’s open position in the penalty area, but they missed it because of the controversy surrounding the incident. However, because defender Danny Ward had his back turned when the ball hit his hand, referee Chris Kavanag and the video assistant referee did not award a penalty.
Crystal Palace doesn’t appear to have any interest in scoring any more goals, preferring instead to concentrate on defending in vast numbers. The 76-year-old head coach Roy Hodgson gave the big players the instruction to bring the ball closer to the corner area of Manchester United in order to draw out the game for as long as possible. Because of this, the excitement level of the home team steadily decreases throughout the game, which results in a lower level of tension in the final minutes. When Hodgson led his team to Old Trafford in the competition, they did not suffer a single loss, making him the first coach in tournament history to accomplish this feat.
In the game’s last minutes, head coach Erik ten Hag converted midfielder Harry Maguire into a striker by inserting him into the action. The only time Maguire was able to touch the ball with his foot was when he attempted to pass it to teammate Alejandro Garnacho, but the pass was intercepted and the ball was lost.
After the game was done, the camera never stopped showing head coach Ten Hag, who was very displeased over his team’s performance. The “Red Devils” play against Galatasaray at home in the second round of the group stage of the Champions League will be significant for him, followed by the “Red Devils” encounter against Brentford away in the eighth round of the Premier League. It is possible that Manchester United may have another season that will go down as one of their worst ever if they continue to struggle.