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Manchester United thrashed Leeds United 6-2 at the Old Trafford in what was an intriguing Premier League encounter. In their first league meeting between the two Northern rivals since 2004, the hosts produced a remarkable first-half display to record their sixth win in their last seven games.
The hosts got off to a dream start in the game as they scored virtually right after kickoff when Luke Shaw stole the ball off Raphinha near the halfway line and found Bruno Fernades infield. The midfielder kept his calm to find Scott McTominay, who finished the move with a wonderful strike into the right bottom corner.
The Scottish midfielder doubled their lead within a minute, with Shaw yet again involved in the buildup. His long throw found Martial, who found McTominay out with a nice through ball. McTominay took it in his stride and swept it past Meslier in the same spot.
The chances kept coming for the hosts and Fernandes got his goal in the 20th minute with an easy finish after they had stolen the ball from Leeds yet again. Shaw was once again in the thick of things for the fourth goal. His corner was met by Anthony Martial, whose header was turned into the back of the net by Victor Lindelof for an easy tap-in.
The visitors finally pulled one back through Liam Cooper, whose header could not be saved despite Manchester United goalkeeper David De Gea's best efforts.
The visitors tried to push United into their own half after the break but could not find that final touch in front of the goal. They ended up conceding again in the 66th minute from another break by the hosts, with Daniel James calmly driving the ball through the legs of Meslier.
Fernades scored the sixth goal for Manchester United from the spot in the 70th minute, but the visitors got their second consolation goal just three minutes later through a beautiful curling effort from Stuart Dallas from the edge of the box.
Here we take a look at the five major talking points from one of the most entertaining Premier League games in recent memory, as Manchester United move to third in the Premier League standings.
#5 Manchester United bring an end to their home woes in grand fashion
Manchester United have nine wins in the Premier League this term and tonight's huge victory over Leeds was just their second win at Old Trafford. In the seven games at the Theatre of Dreams, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men have lost three times, including the 6-1 thumping by Tottenham Hotspur in October.
Their home form has been a point of concern for the Red Devils so far. However, with their emphatic victory, the 20-time Premier League champions must have gotten a much-needed confidence boost to mount a serious title challenge.
#4 Scott McTominay creates Premier League history with quick-fire brace
Scott McTominay scored his first two Premier League goals of the season in the span of 170 seconds after failing to find the back of the net in his last 17 appearances for the Red Devils. The player also picked up an assist in the second half.
In addition to giving Manchester United a dream start to the game, he also earned himself a place in the history books with his quick-fire brace, as he became the first player in the Premier League history to score twice in the opening three minutes of a game.
He is not a player usually expected to be on the scoresheet for the hosts, but a combination of quick thinking, movement and a bit of luck helped him find the back of the net twice.
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#3 Leeds United refused to go down without a fight
Leeds United have only themselves to blame for the maddening 4-1 scoreline before the interval, as they afforded the hosts a lot of space in the middle of the park to create chances at will. They were unfortunate to have gone two goals behind within three minutes but recovered well from the early setback to call Manchester United defenders into action on the counter.
The visitors matched Manchester United for shots in the first half, but only two of them were on target. Striker Patrick Bamford missed an early chance to half their deficit from Rodrigo's cross and later had a goal disallowed for offside.
They continued to search for counter-attacking opportunities and refused to let the early goals stop them from playing their game. Bielsa's side finally got a goal in the 42nd minute but went on to concede on the counter again in the second half as they pushed high in the hope of scoring goals.
Stuart Dallas scored a peach of a goal in the 62nd minute, as the visitors showed a lot of heart despite trailing by four goals for the majority of the game.
#2 Manchester United continue to win penalties at will
Manchester United were awarded another penalty this season when Anthony Martial was brought down in the box by Struijk. By all means, it was a soft penalty. Nonetheless, it provided them with another opportunity to put the icing on the cake.
Bruno Fernandes stepped up and made no mistake in converting from the spot as he scored his second goal of the night in the 70th minute with his trademark hop, skip and jump penalty.
This was the 32nd penalty have been awarded to the Red Devils since the start of last season, which is the most any team across Europe's top five leagues has received in that period.
#1 Leeds United have now conceded more goals in the league than any other side
Leeds United became the first side to ship in 30 goals in the Premier League this season. It is surprising to note that despite having the worse defensive record in the league, they are seven points clear of the relegation zone.
Marcelo Bielsa's side have played with an attack-at-all-costs kind of football this season and have scored 24 times as a result. This tactic of a fast-paced attacking game works out against teams with a weaker midfield and slow forwards, but it did not work against a Manchester United side that deployed two strong defensive midfielders.
Although we did not expect to Bielsa to change his tactics, he might want to work on their effectiveness in the final third, as they could only score twice from 17 shots on target.
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