September 25, (THEWILL) – Kortney Hause gave Aston Villa an unexpected 1-0 victory over Manchester United with a goal in the 88th minute at Old Trafford.
Even more shocking was that the usually reliable Bruno Fernandes blazed a penalty over deep into injury time after Hause was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box.
The fixture appeared to be heading for a draw when Hause left his marker, Edinson Cavani, for dead, as he headed in off a corner kick with only two minutes of regulation time remaining.
In a dramatic twist, Hause and Cavani had another role to play the match’s next highlight. Cavani headed a ball towards goal that was cushioned for the goalkeeper by Hause’s left hand. Referee Mike Dean immediately pointed to the spot, a decision that the VAR immediately backed up.
The fans waited with bated breath as Fernades stepped up to take the spot-kick. However, he could only look on in horror as his shot horrendously went over the bar.
It was truly a bad day in the office for Ole Gunnar Solkjaer and his team, losing the match after losing Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire to injuries in the course of the match. The loss marked the Red Devil’s third in four games, counting from the comeback loss to Young Boys in the UEFA Champions League.
The Villans created better opportunities and were worthy winners in the end. United remained a threat from set-pieces and twice went close towards the end of the half, but Maguire’s attempt was stopped by the superb goalkeeping of Emiliano Martinez, who was voted the man of the match.
Paul Pogba was also guilty of throwing away opportunities. He flashed a glancing header agonisingly wide with United in the need of a creative spark to break the deadlock but found none because Villa had locked out Cristiano Ronaldo.
David De Gea did well to keep the home side going, stopping Ollie Watkins with a good save but was lucky Jacob Ramsey fluffed his lines when he had a chance to give the Villans the lead.
The match also marked the first time Cristiano Ronaldo would not score since his return to Manchester United.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
