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Manchester United played spoilsports at Nuno Espirito Santo’s farewell to Wolverhampton Wanderers. Goals from Anthony Elanga and Juan Mata secured a 2-1 win for the Red Devils at the Molineux Stadium on the final day of the 2020-21 Premier League campaign.
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The visitors, who fielded a second-string side against the largely full-strength Wolves, took the lead in the 13th minute through Elanga. The youngster headed home an excellent cross from Daniel James to bag his first-ever senior goal for Manchester United.
The hosts seemed to snap back into life after conceding the early goal and hit back in the 39th minute. Full-back Nelson Semedo was on hand to finish off an intricate passing move from Wolves, matching Elanga in scoring his first goal for his side.
However, Manchester United hit back just before the half-time interval. After Donny van de Beek was brought down by Roman Saiss in the penalty area, Mata tucked away the resultant spot-kick to put his side in the lead once again.
Buoyed by a vocal set of fans in attendance, the home side stepped up their efforts to get back into the game. However, the Manchester United defense stood firm in the second half to keep Wolves at bay, thus securing three points to wrap up the domestic season on a high.
On that note, here are the five major talking points from the game.
#1 Manchester United have the Europa League final firmly in their sights
While there were a few meaningful fixtures to be played elsewhere in the Premier League, Manchester United were guaranteed a second-placed finish and Champions League football next season regardless of the outcome at the Molineux.
As a result, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made wholesale changes to the Manchester United lineup, opting to rest the majority of his star names ahead of the upcoming Europa League final against Villarreal.
There were welcome starts for the likes of Donny van de Beek, Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic, while youngsters like Amad Diallo and Anthony Elanga were also given a chance to impress from the start.
However, in the other camp, Wolves named their strongest possible starting eleven as they aimed to welcome fans back to their stadium with a victory on the final day of the season.
#2 Nuno Espirito Santo bids Wolves farewell in front of fans at Molineux
As well as bringing the 2020-21 Premier League campaign for Wolves to an end, this game also signaled the end of Nuno Espirito Santo’s impressive four-year tenure at the club.
The Portuguese departs after an impressive string of achievements at the club. These include promotion back to the top flight, consecutive seventh-placed finishes and even a run to the quarter-finals of the Europa League last season.
Even though the current season has fallen short of the lofty standards set by Nuno and his side, a lot of it can be explained by COVID-related complications. Additionally, the loss of a couple of star players due to injury and outgoing transfers had an impact too
As a result, the outgoing manager received a fond farewell from the Wolves faithful who were in attendance at the ground when the final whistle blew, in recognition of his stellar service to the club. Nuno's exit also signals the start of constant speculation as to where his next destination is likely to be, as well as who Wolves are likely to replace him with.
#3 Red Devils end their season unbeaten on the road
Much of Manchester United’s success this season has to be put down to their impressive away record, especially in the league. With their home form proving to be quite disappointing, their performances on the road have gone a long way towards balancing things out in the final table.
As a result of their win at Molineux, Manchester United joined an exclusive band of just three clubs who have gone an entire English top-flight campaign unbeaten away from home. The Red Devils join Preston and Arsenal - the Gunners managed to do so twice - in achieving this remarkable feat.
This achievement gives Manchester United a major boost ahead of the Europa League final and going into next season. Combined with an improvement in home form, a similar campaign on the road would undoubtedly allow the Red Devils to stake a more substantial claim for the title.
#4 Manchester United give fans a tantalizing glimpse of the future
With the Europa League final on the horizon for Manchester United, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer opted to rest the majority of his starters and field a mix of youth prospects and fringe players.
Among the youngsters taking the field from the start for Manchester United were Anthony Elanga and Amad Diallo, whose performances for United’s youth teams this season have caught the eye.
Also named on the bench were the likes of Will Fish, Shola Shoretire and Hannibal Mejbri. All of them were also rewarded for their performances at youth level and were brought on in the final stages of the game.
As a result, United saw the game out with an extremely youthful quartet of Elanga, Hannibal, Shoretire and Daniel James leading the line for them. Also present on the field were Brandon Williams, Dean Henderson and Axel Tuanzebe, who, along with Fish, completed an impressive complement of academy graduates for United.
Manchester United fans will no doubt expect the club to contest for the signatures of the world’s best players this summer. However, they can also take heart from their commitment to field players from their youth sides, some of whom they will no doubt expect to lead United to trophies in the future.
#5 Both sides sign off hoping for improvements next season
While the gap to local rivals Manchester City is yet to be bridged by Manchester United, it has been a season of positives for the Red Devils. Not only have they accrued more points this season than they did last time out, but they are also in the running to win their first piece of silverware under Solskjaer.
While they end the season on a high, Manchester United will be well aware of certain areas they need improvement in. Whether it be their shaky defense or their dubious home form, United will aim to come back stronger next season.
Meanwhile, Wolves will begin a new chapter in their history next season with a new face at the helm after Nuno Espirito Santo departs the club, leaving behind an impressive legacy.
The 2021-22 Premier League campaign is likely to be one of rebuilding for Wolves. They will welcome striker Raul Jimenez back into the fold following an injury that kept him out for the majority of the recently concluded season. Wolves will also look to make additions to the side as they aim to make their way back into the top half of the table.
