Match Report: Manchester United 3-0 Bournemouth

Manchester United swept aside Bournemouth by three goals to nil at Old Trafford on Tuesday night as Erik ten Hag’s side continued in its good vain of form since the resumption of the Premier League after Christmas.

Some Reds fans were slightly nervous before the game began with Ten Hag opting to rotate his starting eleven to include the likes of Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Donny van de Beek, but those nerves were soon settled after Casemiro fired the home side into a 23^rd minute lead. The Brazilian midfielder was the first to attack Christian Eriksen’s free-kick from the left flank as he cushioned the ball into the top corner on the volley to score his first Old Trafford goal.

United did not pepper Mark Travers in the Bournemouth goal throughout the half, but they dominated the proceedings as expected, with the away side limited to few opportunities in the attack.

Sadly, van de Beek left the field in great distress before half-time following a hefty tackle. He is suspected to be out for a while following images that have done the rounds on social media showing unnatural knee movement. He was replaced by Alejandro Garnacho.

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The Red Devils deservedly doubled their lead in the 49^th minute through the unlikely outlet of Luke Shaw. The England international started the move with a darting run down the left following a neat one-two with Marcus Rashford. Shaw then played it to Fernandes in the middle who shifted it out to Garnacho on the right before the Argentine returned it to Shaw in the middle of the area who slotted home with ease in front of the Stretford End.

Bournemouth did create some sporadic opportunities at 2-0 down, but David De Gea was impressive in the second half with four or five quality stops to ensure his side a fourth consecutive clean sheet.

The Cherries evidently became more weary and disheartened as the game fizzled out. Garnacho’s curled effort clipped the outside of the post, and Fred added more energy to a comfortable United side after coming on in place of Eriksen.

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The win was sealed in the 86^th minute when Shaw played a delightful lob pass into the path of Bruno Fernandes who looked set to belt it home from close range, but the Portuguese instead squared it and teed up Rashford on the volley who tapped home into a gaping net for yet another goal as his hot streak continues.

Final Score: Manchester United 3-0 Bournemouth (Casemiro 23’, Shaw 49’, Rashford 86’)

Man of the match

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Casemiro produced another quality holding midfield performance on Tuesday night and even added a goal to his tally, but it would be a disservice to Shaw to not give him the top plaudit for an exceptional performance.

The 27-year-old played the previous two matches at left-centre back, earning two clean sheets and rightful appreciation from the manager and fans, but the defender slotted seamlessly back into his familiar left-back role and showed what he can offer the team both in the attack and defence against Bournemouth.

Shaw looked confident and assured throughout the game; the visitors got nothing out of him down their right-hand side and he contributed well to the flow of possession in the attack.

His goal in the second half was started and finished off by himself and it exemplified his attacking threat. The ball to Fernandes for the third goal was pin-point, perhaps a ‘second assist’ if you like, and it put the cherry on top of a very good performance for the Englishman.

The bigger picture

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Following the return from the World Cup, United have won 2-0 vs Burnley, 3-0 vs Nottingham Forest, 0-1 vs Wolves and now 3-0 vs Bournemouth, scoring nine and conceding none. There cannot be too many complaints.

People will argue that the quality of opposition is not great, and whilst this is a valid point, these victories are only six or seven months on from the club’s worst ever Premier League side. These sorts of fixtures proved a big struggle for United last year, so fans should feel no guilt in celebrating small victories that build towards a greater goal.

You would expect that the good form will continue against a woeful Everton side and League One Charlton Athletic in the domestic cup competitions. The real tests will come after that against Manchester City and Arsenal in the league. Given the good performances and form, there is no reason that the team should overly fear the two.

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It was good to see Ten Hag rotate his team. Maguire and Lindelof were fairly average, but Varane was rested and Martinez could reintegrate off the bench towards the end. Antony was not on the bench so there could be an issue there. Eriksen was hooked off after an hour. Sadly for van de Beek, he just cannot catch a break. That injury looked bad and could set him back months.

Transfers are all about opinion, but it seems Ten Hag is crying out for Joao Felix on loan until the end of the season. Antony is now injured, Anthony Martial went straight down the tunnel after coming off, van de Beek will probably be out for months, Jadon Sancho seems the great unknown at the moment, and Anthony Elanga seems rather average when he plays currently. Felix can cover all those positions and United are short heading into the second half of the campaign.

What’s next for Manchester United?

Next up for Ten Hag and United is Everton in the 3^rd round of the FA Cup, kicking off at Old Trafford this coming Friday night at 20:00 (BST). After that, it is Charlton Athletic the following Tuesday night in a Carabao Cup quarter-final, again at the Theatre of Dreams, at 20:00 (BST).