Manchester United finally won the Europa League on Thursday. At Old Trafford, the team of manager Erik ten Hag only managed to bring Omonia Nicosia to its knees in injury time: 1-0. Substitute Scott McTominay scored the only goal of the game in the 93rd minute. Thanks to the late victory, United (nine points) is with one and a half legs in the knockout phase of the Europa League: one point against Real Sociedad (twelve) or Sheriff Tiraspol (three) is enough to reach the top two of Group E. end.
Ten Hag made several changes compared to last weekend’s Premier League match with Everton (1-2). Tyrell Malacia, among others, was given the opportunity, at the expense of Luke Shaw, to make up for his blunder from the first game in Cyprus. The Dutchman was then responsible for Omonia’s opening goal with an individual error. Cristiano Ronaldo started as the deepest striker and was joined at the forefront from the flanks by Marcus Rashford and Antony. Former Ajax player Lisandro Martínez was, as usual, used as left center defender.
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— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 13, 2022
United gradually built up the pressure on the enemy goal from the first whistle. Where it ‘only’ remained at high pressure in the opening phase, the best opportunities arose halfway through the first half. The first imposed chance was for Rashford. Cristiano Ronaldo captured the ball on the edge of the box and reached the left winger via Bruno Fernandes, who was unable to capitalize on the opportunity face to face with goalkeeper Francis Uzoho.
Minutes later, Rashford got a second chance. This time he pulled in from the left and took a lunge, but Uzoho dove the ball from the bottom right corner. After more than half an hour of play, Casemiro also lacked fortune. The Brazilian tried his luck with a hard shot from about 25 meters away; however, his effort landed on the crossbar. Omonio clearly had no intention of taking any risks and, logically, parked the bus. Although the Cypriots were under continuous pressure, they also held up in the second act.
After the break, United stepped on the accelerator even further, but, mainly thanks to excellent goalkeeping by Uzoho, a total of sixteen goals were ennobled. After an hour of play, Rashford had an excellent opportunity to score the opening goal after a perfect deep pass from Casemiro. The winger controlled the ball excellently, although he then shot wide incomprehensibly. In the remainder of the game, Ronaldo, Rashford and substitute McTominay, among others, had the opportunity to break the spell on several occasions, but it wasn’t until the 93rd minute before Uzoho was finally outwitted. After a threat from Jadon Sancho, the ball caromed at the feet of McTominay, who shot in from close range: 1-0.