Eleven days after Manchester United routed Leicester under Ruud van Nistelrooy in the Carabao Cup here, the interim manager signed off with another easy-street win over the Foxes and so ends his four-game term unbeaten.
In all the Dutchman has three victories, and for this one he could thank Bruno Fernandes, who graced a 250th United appearance by scoring the first goal and causing enough trouble for the hapless Victor Kristiansen to bundle past his goalkeeper, Mads Hermansen, for the second.
Fernandes’s goal was a fourth of Van Nistelrooy’s brief reign after zero for Erik ten Hag in the captain’s previous 17 outings, a run that stretched back to April. Ten Hag has been replaced by Rúben Amorim, whose opening day as the new head coach is due to be on Monday, as United hope their latest reset is finally the right one.
Fernandes said: “It was a long time that I wasn’t scoring and now goals are coming in the last few games.”
In an unsurprising move, Van Nistelrooy’s one change from the XI that drew with Chelsea last Sunday was finding a place for the explosive aggression of Amad Diallo – Alejandro Garnacho was the fall guy – and his thrust had the visitors on their heels throughout.
One dart swept the 22-year-old deep into Leicester territory and provoked Abdul Fatawu into upending him. Fernandes targeted Casemiro with the free-kick but the visitors cleared.
United hemmed Leicester in. Any forays were on the counter, as when Fatawu mugged Casemiro and the ball went to Wilfred Ndidi, but the home team escaped.
The first of Diallo’s double in Thursday’s 2-0 Europa League victory over Paok was a craftily looped header, and here United attempted a repeat. Marcus Rashford dropped the ball in from the left towards the far post where Diallo lurked, but Kristiansen headed out.
The Leicester defender was to have a shocker for Fernandes’s opener. With his side on the attack, a long United clearance caused Kristiansen to hesitate: fatal if Diallo is closing down. He was, he took the ball, and made a turbo-charged run on goal. The ball went for a throw-in and, again, Diallo starred. Noussair Mazraoui found Fernandes, who rolled the ball to Diallo. By appearing casual the Ivorian duped Steve Cooper’s team and allowed a moment of brilliance: the backheeled return to Fernandes, who skipped forward and fashioned a peach of a curler that defeated Hermansen into his bottom left corner.
United were in raptures, the goalkeeper furious at those slumbering in front of him – understandably. These emotions soon nearly tilted. Ndidi was not tracked as he ran in behind, Facundo Buonanotte chipped over, but the midfielder failed to beat André Onana at close range.
Cue a Van Nistelrooy fit at the lack of a runner with Ndidi. Yet overall United were akin to a boxer ahead on points keeping the opposing pugilist at arm’s length with their jab: of this, Harry Winks’ hit-and-hope effort was emblematic.
But the gaps in midfield remained in quick transition and so Winks’ lob into Buonanotte left United scrambling and Mazraoui appearing to take him down. This occurred on the borderline of the area but Peter Bankes gave neither penalty or free-kick, the referee invoking the travelling faithful’s ire.
A far more sour pill was theirs to swallow next, in what was a calamity of errors from those in blue. Mazraoui’s flighted delivery was missed comically by both Jannik Vestergaard and Wout Faes, and Kristiansen’s nightmare continued as the ball glanced off the marauding Fernandes’ thigh and pinged in off the defender for an own goal and 2-0. The half ended with Diallo – who else? – burning a hole through Leicester and shooting, though the sharp Hermansen beat his effort away.
Could United close this out? Being unable to seal the deal has been one of their major faults. Manuel Ugarte was a fire-dousing dynamo who did his best to ensure they did so. A chop of Buonanotte that gave a free-kick near United’s D was due to this enthusiasm but the hash Leicester made of the dead ball let him off the hook.
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On 57 minutes Van Nistelrooy removed a disappointing Rashford for Garnacho and Diogo Dalot for Jonny Evans (perhaps for a knock), Lisandro Martínez moving to left-back and Mazraoui to right-back.
After a clip on the ankle that needed treatment, Martínez fed Garnacho but he muddled down a cul-de-sac near the left corner flag and James Justin mopped up. The winger did the precise same thing after a glorious left-footed 40-yard Ugarte parabola took him clear. As Garnacho reached the area, a cutback on Faes failed, and he fell over.
But the 20-year-old laughed last and loudest thanks to a seventh goal of the campaign created by Fernandes’s curving pass and finished by an arrow from the winger that allowed Hermansen scant chance.
His celebration was muted. Fernandes said: “Garnacho scored a banger but didn’t celebrate like he should because he thinks he has lost faith from some fans. I told him: ‘People will always moan but lots of people like you and enjoy what you do.’”
