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Manchester United beat Norwich City 3-1 in the Premier League clash on Sunday, taking them to 13 points from 10 matches and the 7th position in the league table. On the other hand, Norwich are fighting a relegation battle at the 19th position with 7 points from 10 matches.
Scott McTominay opened the scoring for United in the 21st minute and Marcus Rashford increased the deficit in the 30th. Anthony Martial scored United’s third goal in the 73rd minute before Onel Hernandez pulled one back for Norwich in the dying minutes of the match.
It was a creditable win for United against a side that had defeated Manchester City on their home ground in September. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team had drawn with league leaders Liverpool last week, and yesterday’s win would give them further confidence. They had around 55% ball possession last night and also made around 20 attempts at the Norwich goal.
Here, we take a look at the 3 primary reasons behind United’s win over Norwich:
#1 Scott McTominay was a driving force in the midfield
The 22-year-old McTominay was a revelation for United last season, and he continues to be a pivotal player for them this season too. He started as a defensive midfielder in United’s 4-2-3-1 formation but regularly ventured into the final third with his bursting runs, especially in the first half.
McTominay played as a box-to-box midfielder at times, and he also made several attempts at the opposition goal. He punished Norwich for their defensive lapse in the first half by scoring with a booming shot from inside the Norwich penalty box.
It was his fourth goal for United in his 59th match.
Fred, McTominay’s partner in United’s double pivot, also made his mark with a few vital interceptions in the midfield. One of his goal-bound shots even resulted in a handball inside the Norwich box, but Martial missed the penalty.
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#2 Martial and Rashford gave United tactical flexibility upfront
The presence of Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford made United flexible in attack, as they swapped positions at times and made things difficult for the Norwich defence.
Rashford started on the left wing, but regularly ran into empty spaces and charged into the penalty box, thereby troubling the Norwich defenders. United's 4-2-3-1 formation became a 4-3-3 at times, with Martial, Rashford and Daniel James forming a potent threesome in their attack.
Rashford got hold of a wonderful cross from James on the right flank, and beat the Norwich offside trap to score United’s second goal. It was his fifth goal of the season. Rashford had also scored against Liverpool from a similar cross; such goals underline his attacking prowess and goal-scoring instincts.
Martial on the other hand started as the centre-forward, but kept moving to the flanks to stretch the opposition defence. He tried to cut in form the left wing several times with his quick dribbles.
He also played a one-two with Rashford before scoring his 52nd goal for United in the second half.
Both Martial and Rashford missed a penalty apiece in the first half, or else the victory would have been even more impressive for the visiting team.
#3 James and Wan-Bissaka combined well through the right flank
Daniel James had yet another good outing for United; his beautiful cross led to United’s second goal, as already mentioned above. It was his second assist of the season, and there will likely be many more to come.
James also fell back into his own half repeatedly in order to help the defence. The youngster is growing in stature with every match, and promises to have a great career ahead.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka, United’s right-back, combined well with James through the right flank, and made some good overlapping runs through the right-wing. Wan-Bissaka also contributed defensively, and made some vital tackles in the defensive third.
On quite a few occasions Wan-Bissaka and James played passes between themselves and cut through the Norwich defensive line. Both those youngsters had significant impact on the match, which was a good sight for the United supporters.
