Manchester United 1-0 Astana: 3 reasons why Man Utd won | UEFA Europa League

#2 Astana came to park the bus

Astana manager, Roman Hryhorchuk

It's been very evident this season that Manchester United struggle to break teams which lie deep in their half, as even with heavy hitters like Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial in the side, they have fallen short in that regard time and again.

The United team is set to play on the counter, with speed demons like Martial, Marcus Rashford, and Daniel James always rearing to break on the counter. However, when teams cede possession to United for large swathes of the game, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men struggle to string brilliant attacking manoeuvres.

Therefore, it wasn't surprising to see Roman Hryhorchuk's men playing behind the ball in droves. They, however, troubled United when they decided to attack briefly in the second half, as they threatened to take the lead on several occasions.

The tact almost earned Astana a draw, however, Mason Greenwood had other ideas. As they say - "fortune favours the brave".

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#1 A moment of magic from Mason Greenwood

Manchester United's Mason Greenwood

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said Mason Greenwood is one of the best finishers he has seen, and the 17-year-old rewarded his manager's faith in him tonight with a brilliant individual effort which brought back loving memories of Robin Van Persie.

It's too soon to compare the young Englishman to the legend, however, Greenwood has that Van Persie-esque swagger about him.

In a moment of magic, Greenwood shifted his weight from his dominant left foot to the right, turning Astana's Dorin Rotariu inside out and stabbing the ball through the legs of Eric Nenad that brought about the decisive goal of the game.