4 things we learned from Manchester United's FA Cup win over Wolverhampton Wanderers

Manchester United beat Wolverhampton Wolves 1-0 last night in the replay of the 3rd round FA Cup tie at Old Trafford. Juan Mata scored a late winner, racing onto a pass from Anthony Martial and chipping the keeper late in the second half to send his side through to the next round.

It was the 5th time these sides have gone head-to-head in the past 15 months and finally the team from Manchester has come out on top after 2 draws and 2 defeats at the hands of Nuno Santo's well drilled and highly effective setup. After the game ended 0-0 at Molineux, the replay proved to be much more interesting than its previous iteration.

Wolves youngster Pedro Neto seemed to have given the visitors a lead early in the game but the goal was ruled out by VAR for handball in the buildup by Raul Jimenez. Both the sides saw many opportunities in front of goal with neither being able to hold onto possesion for too long.

Here are 4 observations from the game.

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#1 Mata still has a role to play

Mata got the winner as United went through to the 4th Round of the FA Cup

For about 18 months now, Juan Mata's importance to his team has been under scrutiny as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer transitions his team towards a more high intensity, expansive style of play. The form of Jesse Lingard and the lack of quality provided by Andreas Pereira compounded by the lack of signings in attacking midfield have forced Ole into playing the Spaniard and over the last couple of weeks he has shown he can still just about carry on providing value to the team even though this might not be the case when opponents of an higher ilk come by.

After getting two wonderful assists against Norwich last time out followed by another good showing capped off by a goal against Wolves, it seems that for now he has fought his way back into contention for future matches.

#2 United need Bruno and more ASAP

Sporting CP's playmaker is touted to make a switch to Old Trafford soon

If reports are to be believed, Portuguese playmaker Bruno Fernandes' move to United is imminent in January. He will not only bring in the desired quality (the potuguese had 52 goal contributions last season for Sporting Lisbon) but as it stands he will also help in terms of the sheer number of bodies United have available in the midfield.

With the injuries of Pogba and McTominay, Fred and Matic have been the midfield 2 for a while now playing every 3 days due to a congested run of cup and league fixtures over the busy Christmas and New Year period. They need more midfielders immediately and we shouldn't be surprised if Bruno isn't the only arrival in January, with Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare and out of favour Atletico Madrid youngster Marcos Llorente being some of the few names thrown around.

#3 Rashford injury might mean dreadful spell for United

Marcus Rashford had a knock to his back which forced him to go off

One of the few positives of Manchester United's season has been the coming of age of Marcus Rashford. He has stepped up in the big games and his 19 goals and 5 assists in all competitions show us that he has been the focal point of United's attack for a long while now.

He came onto the pitch at the 64th minute mark and went into a challenge with Matt Doherty where he came out second best clutching his lower back.

Never want to feel like I’ve let my teammates, the club and most importantly the fans down so did my very best to carry on tonight and was gutted to come off.Top work from the lads to get into the next round 👊🏿 pic.twitter.com/ZLpxiqhtq3

— Marcus Rashford (@MarcusRashford) January 15, 2020

His immediate withdrawal and subsequent comments by his manager in the post match presser mean that he might be out for a spell where United simply can't afford to miss him with Liverpool, City and a return of Wolves on the horizon. Solskjaer said,

"He’s getting treatment now and hopefully we can get him back for Sunday but I’m not sure.He’s struggled with his back lately and he’s got another one.That backfired a little bit. Yes we got the goal and he was involved in the goal but it might have cost him Sunday.”

He was quick to add,

“He’s a quick healer and he’ll play through some pain, definitely, if he’s capable and it’s not a bad, bad injury, but we’ve seen that he’s struggled lately."

#4 FA Cup exit might be beneficial for Wolves

Wolverhampton Wanderers will look to turn their attention to the Europa League now

Playing their 38th game of their season already, Wolves gave an excellent account of themselves. A highly efficient and well drilled side working in a system playing to their strengths.

The loss will knock them back a bit but it might be a blessing in disguise as off late they were facing a host of injuries to key players such as Willy Boly and Diogo Jota

With Europa action returning soon they might just be happy to consolidate resources and try and win that tournament or get into the top 4 to get to their Champions League destination.