A breathless affair at Molineux saw Manchester United beat Wolves 4-3 in a Premier League classic. Kobbie Mainoo’s stoppage-time winner came after Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund had put United in control. Scott McTominay restored a two-goal advantage after Pablo Sarabia’s penalty for Wolves but as Max Kilman and Pedro Neto thought they’d pulled off an epic comeback, Mainoo took centre stage.
Manchester United rescued a late 4-3 victory over Wolves thanks to a dramatic winner from Kobbie Mainoo in injury time.
The visitors twice had a two-goal lead, but Wolves pulled it back to 3-3 in the dying minutes with goals from Max Kilman and then an injury-time strike from Pedro Neto.
Neto’s 95th-minute strike looked to have secured a point for the home side, only for United to go straight up the other end and sneak back the win with a brilliant individual goal from the 18-year-old Mainoo.
United dominated the first half, creating a stream of chances and having two goals disallowed. Much of the pre-match build-up radiated around Marcus Rashford, who responded to being dropped from the squad last weekend by putting United ahead inside five minutes with a fine curling effort.
Rasmus Hojlund then doubled United’s lead later in the half scrambling the ball over the line from close range.
A penalty from substitute Pablo Sarabia pulled Wolves back into the game with 19 minutes to go, only for an immediate Scott McTominay headed reply to make it 3-1.
A stunning comeback from Wolves followed, only to be usurped by Mainoo’s late heroics.
The win pushes United up to seventh in the table. They will now host West Ham on Sunday, while Wolves face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
TALKING POINT
Amid the drama, United may have found their best XI. The game tonight will forever be remembered for how it finished, not how it started, but the United team that trotted out onto Molineux tonight might just represent the best combination that Ten Hag has.
Amid the drama, United may have found their best XI. The game tonight will forever be remembered for how it finished, not how it started, but the United team that trotted out onto Molineux tonight might just represent the best combination that Ten Hag has.
A clearly focused Rashford is a serious player, and with the dynamic Garnacho on the other side of the increasingly impressive Hojlund, United have a serious front three.
Bruno Fernandes has free reign to join them with the secure base of Mainoo and Casemiro behind, and the return of Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw adds a different dimension to the left side of the back four.
Whether they can stay fit enough to play regularly, and consistent enough to keep getting results, is still to be seen. Losing a two-goal lead underscores how brittle a work-in-progress United are, but there was also evidence of some serious character in coming back to win. Erik Ten Hag needs something to impress his new employers within the next four months, and with this XI he might be onto something.
PLAYER OF THE MATCH – KOBBIE MAINOO (MANCHESTER UNITED)
It might seem obvious to pick the player that fired in a devastating winner, but Mainoo was an oasis of calm in a charged atmosphere at Molineux tonight. He’s improving at a rate of knots in his debut season – Gareth Southgate should be taking notes – and capped a composed performance with a goal that he’ll do well to top in his career.
PLAYER RATINGS
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Sa 6; Kilman 7, Dawson 6, Toti Gomes 6; Semedo 7, Lemina 6, Doyle 6, Doherty 6; Neto 7, Cunha 7, Bellegarde 6
SUBS: Ait-Nouri 6, Joao Gomes 6, Sarabia 7, Fraser 6
Manchester United: Onana 6; Dalot 6, Varane 6, Martinez 7, Shaw 7; Mainoo 8, Casemiro 7, Fernandes 7; Rashford 7, Hojlund 7, Garnacho 7
SUBS: Evans 6, Maguire 6, Forson 6, McTominay 7, Antony 5
Source: Euro Sport
