Away days returned yesterday, with the travelling United contingent heading southbound to fill the away end at a packed St Mary's Stadium. Avoidance of defeat would see the reds equal the record Premier League unbeaten away run, after Arsenal managed 27 matches on the road without losing between 2003 and 2004. Although, at this early stage in the campaign, anything but a victory would no doubt be disappointing against a Southampton side who are typically rather brittle defensively.
Southampton did pose sufficient pressure in the opening few minutes, fuelled by the returning home support. However, before long, United begun to exploit the hosts. The best early opportunity came from a teasing Fernandes freekick from the right, as Lindelof narrowly missed the ball with an attempted diving header; Maguire couldn't react in time to guide the ball goalbound with enough threat, with the ball scrambled off the line more than once as Martial was also denied. Shaw soon troubled his former club with a freekick from the opposite flank, with Pogba's ultimate effort blocked after more defensive panic. The Frenchman combined with the left-back once again from a subsequent delivery, this time heading narrowly over the crossbar. Struggling to defend the numerous United set-pieces, The Saints were really on the back foot and suffered as their opposition got into their groove.
Against the run of play, it was Southampton who surprisingly took the lead around the half-hour mark. Fernandes was dispossessed forcefully by Jack Stephens in the defensive third and, despite claims of a foul, the challenge was deemed fair (with officials now urged to allow the game to flow). The resultant passage was smooth from Southampton, with Adam Armstrong's backheel allowing Che Adams to strike goalwards. The Scotsman's finish from the edge of the box was relatively untroubling, but Fred's outstretched leg deflected it past De Gea to gift The Saints the advantage. It was a lacklustre spell from United, with a clear absence of determination or pressure to deny the hosts' intricacy. Ultimately, Fred's dangled leg caused an entirely avoidable own goal. Solskjaer's side were left ruing wasted opportunities.
Set-pieces did continue to offer United some encouragement, with Matic the latest to come close to scoring as Alex McCarthy denied him late in first half proceedings. Though loopholes remained, the visitors begun to lose their composure; with that, the quality really faltered and it was difficult to regain a prolonged grip on affairs.
Into the second half, though, United did seem somewhat revitalised. After a bright spell from Southampton, the reds managed to level the scoring. Pogba was at the heart of yet another goal: he subtly lifted the ball to Fernandes inside the box after teasing the impressive Valentino Livramento, with Bruno returning the ball into the Frenchman's path. Off the back of four assists against Leeds, Pogba poked the ball into Greenwood who's finish wriggled beneath McCarthy and into the back of the net.
Pogba secured his position as the only player to ever provide five assists in the opening two matches of a Premier League season, already finding himself a quarter of the way to the single-season record in the competition. Meanwhile, Greenwood scored his 19th Premier League goal; only Michael Owen, Robbie Fowler and Wayne Rooney have more goals as teenagers in the division. With 31 goals overall, Mason is only bettered by Norman Whiteside and George Best amongst teenagers at United.
After just over ten minutes into the half, the ineffective Martial was replaced by Sancho for his second United appearance. Southampton undoubtedly endured a phase on the ropes, with McCarthy forced into action a few times as the reds found some rhythm. The tiring hosts were hemmed back for a period, but scrappy final third exchanges continued to deny United in promising areas. Aside from a cross-field ball from Shaw narrowly evading him, it proved a struggle to engineer Sancho's desired involvement in the game.
United's inability to convert and latterly create encouraged Southampton, as they shifted up a gear and crept back into contention when it looked as though their opposition would steal three points from a losing position again on their own stomping ground.
It looked as though the hosts could come away with maximum points for a few seconds as the business end of the encounter neared, with Maguire dispossessed in a threatening area. Armstrong - as he was against Everton on the opening weekend - was allowed clean through on De Gea with the United defence visibly disjointed. However, the Spaniard exceptionally denied the former Blackburn man (against the odds given the nature of the chance).
The renewed Southampton press and intensity proved massively effective, with United's momentum lost and confidence diminished after the initial flurry following the goal. The introductions of McTominay and the returning Lingard couldn't change the game enough, with the reds losing their foothold and growing slower and sloppier. Even though the Premier League record unbeaten away run was equalled, it's only with disappointment given the dropping of early points.
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