Premier League 2019/20: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-1 Manchester United - 3 Reasons Why Red Devils were held to a draw

Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester United - Premier League

Manchester United, fresh from their demolition of Chelsea on opening day, looked to carry on their early season momentum after a morale boosting victory at Old Trafford last week.

Wolverhampton Wanderers on the other hand were held to a frustrating stalemate against Leicester City at the King Power and were determined to cause another upset against a big side.

As the two sides locked horns at the Molineux in the tightly contested fixture, the spoils were shared with goals either side of half time.

Manchester United failed to beat Wolves last season in three attempts and their winless run against last season's newly-promoted side was extended to four, as the West-Midlands side earned a fighting 1-1 draw.

The away side opened the scoring, somewhat against the run of play as Marcus Rashford's pass was finished emphatically by Anthony Martial on his weaker foot.

The Red Devils finished the first half strongly and went in to the interval with a deserved 1-0 lead.

Nuno Espirito Santo's men came out all guns blazing in the second half and salvaged a well deserved point, as Martial's first half opener was cancelled out by a sensational strike by Ruben Neves from the edge of the penalty area.

The Portuguese international has developed a reputation of scoring long-rangers in recent years and he added another strike to his growing collection, as his sweetly struck shot riffled in to the top corner past the onrushing David de Gea.

As Wolves fought their way back in to the game and held the Red Devils to a frustrating 1-1 draw, let's look at some of the talking points from the game.

#1 Paul Pogba's penalty miss proves costly

With the scores tied 1-1, Manchester United were presented with a glorious opportunity to take the lead in the second half as they were awarded a penalty.

Conor Coady was adjudged to have fouled Paul Pogba in the penalty area as the Frenchman's crafty run into the box was brought to a halt by the Englishman.

The former Liverpool man's trailing boot left the Frenchman on the floor, leaving the referee no choice but to award a spot-kick.

Having created the opportunity himself, Pogba stepped up for the penalty which was brilliantly kept out by a diving Rui Patricio.

At the end of the day, the World Cup winner's missed spot-kick proved costly and eventually cost his team two points.

#2 Adama Traore's introduction changed the game for the home side

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Wolves lineup with in their preferred 3-5-2, with Matt Doherty and Jonny Otto stationed as full-backs. The Irishman was a selection doubt going in to the game and he pulled up in the closing stages of the first half, leading him to be withdrawn in favor of Adama Traore after half-time.

The La Masia graduate terrorized Luke Shaw from the get-go and proved to be the game changer for the home side, as Wolves clawed their way back in to the game.

Traore's blistering pace and close-control proved too much to handle for the English left-back, as he was left petrified by the prospect of coming up against the former Aston Villa man.

The Spaniard's introduction added another dimension to Wolves' attack and he was the standout player in the second-half as the home side salvaged a well deserved point.

#3 A tale of two halves

Manchester United started the game strongly and looked comfortable after the opening goal, as Wolves were left chasing shadows and sitting deep.

Anthony Martial led from the front and was arguably the best player on the pitch in the first-half, as the Frenchman capped off a lively 45 minutes with a well taken goal.

In stark contrast, the second-half proved to be a different story as the home side looked rejuvenated and raring to go after the break.

Nuno's side hit back with a sensational equalizer from Raul Jimenez and looked by the far the better side in the second-half, as they earned a well deserved point.

Martial was left isolated and the Frenchman was largely ineffective since the equalizer, representing two polarizing halves of football.

Wolves put their initial shortcomings behind them and took charge of the game since the interval and their second-half showing against a quality side like Manchester United is sure to boost their confidence for the rest of the season.

Edited by Kingshuk Kusari