#3 United lack sharpness in front of goal and it nearly cost them
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Mkhitaryan could not impress and was taken off at half-time
Marcus Rashford, who played in 3 different positions had 3 clear-cut chances to put United ahead. First, he headed the ball into the right post from 5 yards out before giving catching practice to Carson from 7 yards out.
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Rashford would later hit the other post to round off a tense spell of attacking football from United and it looked like it could just be one of those nights for Jose Mourinho's men.
Paul Pogba came close to scoring twice-- first from a sparkling freekick which Carson saved exceptionally well and then with a left-footed strike that fizzed past the post. Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata also came close to scoring but United were denied comfort for the greater part of the game.
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Manchester United will need to finish off their chances if they are to close the gap in terms of quality, and in terms of quantity of goals if they want to keep pace with their dominant neighbours. The chances are really not at a premium and it could very well stay that way owing to all the quality Mourinho's men have to offer going forward.
But on a happy note, Romelu Lukaku looks all sharp to get into the thick of things. He bagged an assist as he set Lingard up for the first. He controlled a Pogba clearance like a dolphin and then darted past a defender before engaging in a neat exchange with Martial to seal the deal for United.
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About the author
Shambhu Ajith
Shambhu is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda who focuses on previews, listicles and news articles. An ardent Manchester United supporter since before his teenage years, he started following the Red Devils by age 10 watching MUTV on television. Shambhu is also a highly-revered rapper and a playback singer on Spotify, having a whopping 1 million monthly listeners.
For his articles, Shambhu believes in triple-checking every piece of information, relying on trusted websites like Transfermarkt and Opta, and staying away from speculative publications. He believes that his law degree helped him to be more articulate and meticulous with his content and one of his core strengths is seamlessly involving emotion in his write-ups owing to the love for the sport. For Sportskeeda, has done exclusive interviews with Spanish legends Gaizka Mendieta and Fernando Morientes so far, and his articles boast of a huge readership of close to 50 million.
Shambhu's favorite footballer is Lionel Messi, and the Argentine attaining glory in 2022 is his favorite FIFA World Cup moment. He believes only Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland could replicate Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's rivalry in the years to come. His favorite manager is Sir Alex Ferguson due to the Scot's unmatched longevity at the top.