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The buzz around Manchester United in recent weeks has changed the perceptions of many football fans and pundits alike. The Red Devils didn’t start the season as favorites for the Premier League title, but the signing of a certain Cristiano Ronaldo has given the title race a different complexion.
Of course, there are still those who are not convinced about whether Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the right man to lead this talented crop of players, but so far it’s been good this season. Manchester United have only dropped points against Southampton, having thumped Leeds United on the opening day of the season and also beaten Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Solskjaer and his side once again rose to the occasion on Saturday, recording an impressive 4-1 win over Newcastle United at Old Trafford.
A complete attacking performance from Reds
This was a dominant performance from Manchester United, who enjoyed 65% of the ball possession against Steve Bruce’s ultra-defensive side. The Magpies set out to sit back and frustrate the hosts, but the Reds managed to find a solution by pouring more bodies forward.
Cristiano Ronaldo, making his second debut, opened the scoring at the death of the first half after pouncing on a poor goalkeeping save to score.
However, Newcastle refused to surrender and restored parity early in the second half when Javier Manquillo got on the end of a swift counter-attacking move to fire the ball past David de Gea.
It looked like it was going to be one of those days where Manchester United had all the possession but weren’t ever clinical enough to nick a win. At least that was the feeling until Ronaldo stepped up again to put the Reds in front.
Bruno Fernandes made it 3-1 with a thunderous shot from distance, before Jesse Lingard got on the end of a slick passing move to complete the rout. The result was well-deserved, as the Reds put up a marvelous attacking performance.
Old Trafford revels in Manchester United’s win over Magpies
Ronaldo’s return had Old Trafford bouncing even before the start of Saturday’s game. For the first time in a long while, there is a genuine sense of belief around this club.
Manchester United fans are not the loudest but they kept on singing well beyond 90 minutes. Some even stayed behind for close to an hour just to witness the post-match press conferences.
"When you win a game you enjoy it. When you see fans being happy, you really enjoy it. There were loads of expectations today. They all delivered,” Solskjaer said after the game, as quoted by Manutd.com.
"When it gets back to one each, you never know how it is going to go. But I thought we settled well. We played the ball and, when Luke [Shaw] put on the afterburners! When he really went for it there and Cristiano is so good at timing his runs. It was a fantastic goal by Bruno. You know Bruno and his quality from those areas. I am very, very happy," said the Manchester United boss.
Manchester United are back scoring goals and the fans definitely enjoyed watching their team against Newcastle. The bigger concern, though, is whether they’ll be able to repeat such performances on a weekly basis.
