It would not be an exaggeration to say that Manchester United created enough chances to win three separate football matches on a sultry Saturday night in south London. Somehow, they didn’t even win this one.
United should have been home and defeated at half-time. In that respect, you can sympathize with Erik ten Hag’s frustrations. And there will be a few more after this.
Admittedly, Crystal Palace’s defence often left much to be desired. But that will mean nothing to Ten Hag, who saw his team squander chance after chance.
Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford, who had scored three goals in his previous two games, was on the bench, with Ten Hag explaining his strange decision as a matter of rotation.
In the Sky Sports studio, analyst Jamie Redknapp was in disbelief. “Something has clearly happened,” the former Liverpool and England midfielder claimed.
Manchester United drew 0-0 with Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park
Alejandro Garnacho hit the woodwork in the first half, causing United to waste a number of chances
Palace could have taken the lead in the closing stages but Andre Onana made a stunning two-goal save
By the time referee Craig Taylor blew the whistle for half-time, Rashford’s omission had become a minor issue.
The real story here – and not for the first time this season – was United’s wastefulness.
United have scored five Premier League goals this season, while Wolves – bottom of the table – have the same number.
Credit to Eagles keeper Dean Henderson, who kept Palace level with a series of excellent saves. But in reality, they only had themselves to blame.
Their performance, apart from the finishing, was generally on point. Christian Eriksen orchestrated it all from midfield, picking up passes that no one else in the stadium had noticed.
The Dane’s best days are behind him, but class is enduring and that radiates from him, as the 32-year-old shows.
Matthijs de Ligt also impressed in defence. Not necessarily because of his defending – there wasn’t much you could do about that, to be honest – but because of his calmness in possession.
If the Dutchman can settle in, he has all the qualities to be a top-class central defender in the Premier League.
De Ligt, Alejandro Garnacho and Lisandro Martinez all received zero from Henderson in the first half.
Bruno Fernandes and Garnacho hit the crossbar in almost the same spot in quick succession in the 27th minute, before Joshua Zirkzee headed Amad’s cross wide.
If Eberechi Eze had taken advantage of Palace’s best move and chance of the first half just before half-time, God knows how Ten Hag would have reacted.
Garnacho was given a starting place for Marcus Rashford and was threatening on the left
Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson made several saves, including from Matthijs de Ligt
Henderson stretched to his left to tip Garnacho’s effort wide of the far post
Lisandro Martinez was also stopped at the front post by the former United goalkeeper
Palace improved after the break with Eddie Nketiah firing home a shot under pressure
Joshua Zirkzee’s low ball over the goal narrowly missed Garnacho’s foot
That would have been a miscarriage of justice, and even Oliver Glasner could not argue otherwise.
Palace were lucky, United were unlucky.
In the home dugout, Glasner faced a different frustration than his opponent.
His team struggled to find rhythm and, more importantly, gain control in midfield.
It should therefore not have surprised anyone when Ismaila Sarr and Jefferson Lerma came on at half-time instead of Adam Wharton, who did not appear fit, and Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Eze’s brilliant individual display, which saw him leave four United players for dead before slotting home a corner, immediately improved Palace’s performance.
That was indeed one of Ten Hag’s biggest concerns at half-time: that the home team would not play as badly as in the first half.
That certainly proved to be the case and it speaks volumes that United were happy to leave south London with a point – although Henderson again denied Garnacho in the 62nd minute, with Rashford already sent off.
From the ensuing corner, Martinez was lucky not to hit Daichi Kamada with a reckless and obvious stomp with both legs, earning him a yellow card.
However, it was mainly thanks to André Onana’s excellent double that United scored their point.
After saving Eddie Nketiah’s low shot, Onana jumped up quickly to slam Sarr’s rebound wide. The keeper was mobbed by his team-mates. Rightly so.
Eberechi Eze proved a thorn in United’s side as Palace tried to score against the run of play
Martinez may have been lucky to avoid a red card after a foul with both legs
But the United goalkeeper would have been unable to do anything if Eze had fired home from 10 yards in the 72nd minute after an excellent substitution with Sarr.
What a chance. With the goal in mind, the English star managed to make a sideways stroke. Eze, standing flat out on the grass, knew how bad his miss was.
Glasner, standing in his technical area, tried to get the crowd excited for the closing stages as Palace sensed United were on a roll.
But neither side could produce a winner. United should have won this long before the final whistle. The fact that they didn’t should worry Ten Hag.
