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Manchester United suffered a crushing elimination from the FA Cup, losing 2-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Molineux.
The Red Devils have seen a massive upturn in fortune since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's arrival, hence this defeat would have come as a very bitter pill to swallow.
United have been paired with Barcelona in the quarterfinal of the Champions League, while they are way off the pace in the Premier League and as such, the FA Cup represented their best shot at winning a trophy this season
The victory over United was Wolves' first against the giants in the FA Cup since 1973 and saw them qualify for the semifinal for the first time since 1997/1998. In this piece, we shall be taking a look at three reasons why Wolves posted this shock victory over Manchester United
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#3 United's surprising lack of tempo
Ever since Ole Gunner Solskjaer took over at Old Trafford, not only have United seen an improvement in results, they have also witnessed a massive upturn in playing pattern, with the team resorting to an attacking brand of football reminiscent of years of yore under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Most of the matches under the Norwegian manager have been characterized by a swift counterattacking style, with numerous players continuously operating at a high tempo, giving United an attacking swagger which had been lost in recent seasons.
However, against Wolves, United toiled and foiled in vain, posting a flat, dour performance which was more in tune with the gloomy days of Mourinho and looked nothing like the boisterous and vibrant team we have been watching in recent weeks,
Paul Pogba was a major culprit, as he was a long way off his usual standards, but the United captain on the day was far from being alone, as virtually all his teammates were also laborious, failing to match the high tempo posted by Wolves and struggling to test their host's defense.
This was unarguably the worst performance in the three months that Solskjaer has been in charge, leading to the club losing consecutive matches for the first time since December. Thankfully, United have a two-week break before they are back in action and the 46-year-old would do well to reinvigorate his squad by then.
#2 Wolves executed an almost perfect gameplan
Wolverhampton Wanderers have unarguably been the revelation of the English football season so far.
They might have won the Championship, but the step up to the Premier League is a different kettle of fish entirely and even the most optimistic of fans could not have expected the kind of instant impact the club has had.
Wolves currently find themselves in 7th spot on the league standing and make no mistake about it - they are there on their own merit, as they have been resilient and maintained a solid playing pattern for the entirety of the season.
In the game against Manchester United, Wolves brought their A-Game to the fore, with Nuno Espirito Santo executing a tactical masterclass.
Wolves deployed a 3-5-2 formation and in the first half, maintaining a compact shape to stifle United's fluidity, with wing-backs Doherty and Jonny constantly dropping back to act as extra defenders.
The second half was a more open affair, as the hosts attacked their visitors with a vengeance while also deserving praise for maintaining their structure to make sure United could not take advantage of the extra spaces in behind.
Raul Jimenez was a thorn in the flesh of the United backline throughout the duration of the second half and was ably supported by strike partner Diogo Jota and the pair could have gotten more than their one goal apiece but for some brilliant goalkeeping by Sergio Romero.
Wolves' dominance was utter and this was reflected in the match statistics, as they had 17 shots (7 of this were on target) to United's 11 (just 2 on target) while also getting more corners than them (10 to 6) and as such, the result was a fair reflection of the match.
#1 Returning players from injury
While Solskjaer might have seemed to have the Midas touch (at least until this week) ever since he became United gaffer, one aspect where the Norwegian has not had much luck has been in the injury department.
The former Old Trafford hero has been without the services of a massive ten first-team players over the last two months and deserves immense credit for making the most out of the terrible situation by posting positive results (with the victory over PSG being the hallmark).
His players have however been returning one at a time in recent weeks and against Wolves, he had the complement of most of his first-teamers who had returned to full fitness from injury.
Anthony Martial, Ander Herrera, and Jesse Lingard were all starting for the first time in over a month since suffering injury setbacks, while Nemanja Matic also only recently returned to full fitness recently.
This lack of match fitness was evident in United's play, as the club lacked cohesion and the players struggled to find a rhythm with each other in their play which played a large role in their exit to Wolves in the FA Cup.
