Manchester United vs Huddersfield Town: Paul Pogba double keeps Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side on the up
Manchester United 3-1 Huddersfield Town: The mere presence of Solskjaer in the home dugout not only transformed Old Trafford but rejuvenated their £89m midfielder
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.It was the smile on Paul Pogba's face that said it all. As the midfielder celebrated his second goal against Huddersfield Town, Manchester United's third, he stood still, dead-eyed like Eric Cantona after the chip against Sunderland, then beamed.
Would we have seen that same celebration had Jose Mourinho, rather than Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, still been sitting in the Old Trafford manager's dugout? Would Pogba have even had the confidence or the encouragement to shoot at range and expertly find the bottom left-hand corner of Jonas Lossl's net?
Whatever Solskjaer achieves in this six-month caretaker spell, his arrival has already brought a new sense of optimism to a club that has carried a deathly air of late. There was an energy around this old ground during this 3-1 victory that has rarely been felt over the past few years.
There are still plenty of issues for Solskjaer to contend with, of course. This was not as straightforward an afternoon as the scoreline suggests. Nemanja Matic's opening goal came somewhat against the run of play, while Mathias Jorgensen's late consolation was deserved.
The mood around Old Trafford at full time would have been very different, you imagine, had David de Gea not superbly denied Laurent Depoitre with the score at 1-0. Pogba doubled United's advantage just three minutes later.
Yet in the early days of this significant rebuilding job at Old Trafford, victory is more important than the manner of it. Despite there being positives and negatives, Solskjaer will merely be delighted that his return to Old Trafford was a winning one.
With the ‘20LEgend’ banner on display to his left, returned to the far corner of the Stretford End, Solskjaer walked out to a rapturous reception and acknowledged all four sides of Old Trafford with waves as he made his way to the dugout. Even Fred the Red received a tender hug.
Yet this new sense of optimism would only be sustained with a victory against one of the top flight’s weakest sides.
Huddersfield had scored just 11 times this season at the start of the day, fewer goals than any other Premier League club as the campaign’s halfway point approaches, yet David Wagner’s visitors should have taken an early lead.
When Philip Billing’s long throw caused havoc inside United’s penalty area, Christopher Schindler’s near-post flick-on found an unmarked Terence Kongolo. The Swiss was dead centre of De Gea’s goal, six yards out, yet blazed his volley over the crossbar when it appeared easier to score.
Solskjaer seemed a little concerned. He spent much time in his technical area pointing towards the Huddersfield goal, perhaps imploring United to move the ball forward quicker, maybe just reminding them where it was. It took a quarter of an hour for his side to register a shot on goal.
The fluidity that Solskjaer wants may take time to achieve, and so United’s breakthrough came not through expansive passing play but a well-worked set piece. Lossl denied Victor Lindelof’s near-post header brilliantly, though was powerless to prevent Matic from tapping the rebound from close range.
Huddersfield had shown far more threat than expected, however, and would have levelled shortly after the hour mark if not for De Gea’s breathtaking intervention.
Alex Pritchard’s daisy-cutting corner deceived United and invited Depoitre to shoot across his body first-time. De Gea, the only United player alive to what was going on around him, clawed the ball away from his top right-hand corner. It was a quite masterful stop.
The value of owning the world’s best goalkeeper was then made clear three minutes later as United, having been a fingertip away from losing their lead, instead doubled it.
Like the marvellous third goal against Cardiff City on Saturday, United scored through neat, one-touch interplay down the left, with Rashford, Juan Mata and Ander Herrera all playing their part.
Mata then brought the ball to the byline and cut back for Herrera, whose squared pass was converted low and into the corner by Pogba. He would find the same corner for his second goal, floating Lingard's pass out of Lossl's reach.
Jorgensen's consolation - stabbed home from a set-play two minutes from time - gave the scoreline a fairer reflection but did not dim the mood around Old Trafford. The salvage operation is underway, to chants of 'Ole, Ole, Ole!
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments