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Manchester United were on the wrong end of one of the most shocking results of the season as the Premier League's bottom club, Sheffield United, registered a 2-1 win against them at Old Trafford. On a night that would have seen Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's men move back up to the top of the table, they fell to what was a truly embarrassing loss to a spirited and well-drilled Blades side, giving them just their second win in 20 games.
Chris Wilder's men were short on numbers in their squad with up to eight players unavailable, and could name only six substitutes on the bench. On the other hand, Manchester United decided to rotate for this fixture by making four changes, with the likes of Axel Tuanzebe, Nemanja Matic, Alex Telles, and Marcus Rashford coming back into the starting XI after the Fulham game.
The first half saw Manchester United have the lion's share of the ball but to no good effect as they failed to test Blades keeper Aaron Ramsdale. Wilder's defence led by the experienced Phil Jagielka marshalled United's troops excellently and limited them to just a shot on target.
They also took a rather unlikely lead midway through the first half after David de Gea failed to deal with Kean Bryan from a Sheffield corner. The former Manchester City man became the first Blades player to score at Old Trafford in 28 years and managed to give his side a first-half lead, giving the relegation battlers something to fight for in the second half.
The Red Devils upped the ante in the second 45 minutes as the likes of Bruno Fernandes, and Paul Pogba tried to bring the hosts back on level terms. Their pressure paid off as Harry Maguire's bullet header from a 64th-minute corner leveled the score at Old Trafford.
As Solskjaer's men surged forward in search for a winner, it was Wilder's charges that shocked their decorated hosts. Sheffield United capitalised on some very questionable defending from Manchester United to take the lead for the second time in the game.
After a poor spell of play during which the Red Devils had multiple opportunities to clear the ball, Oliver Burke found himself in space and unleashed a strike that, after a wicked deflection off Axel Tuanzebe, found its way into the back of the net.
The last 15 minutes were dominated once again by Manchester United but it was far too late to conjure up an equaliser, let alone a winner. The defeat sees them remain in second place but gives rivals Manchester City an extra game to establish their superiority in the title race.
Here are some of the best tweets from the game.
