Manchester United 9-0 Southampton: 9 Things We Learned

Manchester United ran amok at Old Trafford as the Red Devils ravaged Southampton 9-0 with the away side down to nine men at the end of the full-time whistle. A game laden with goals and exceptional performances, Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s men well and truly stamped themselves upon the Saints. The win also ties United’s own goal record from when they beat Ipswich Town 9-0 in 1995.

A brace from Anthony Martial was added to goals from Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Marcus Rashford, Edinson Cavani, Bruno Fernandes, Scott McTominay, and Daniel James as well as an own-goal from Jan Bednarek.

1. Theatre of Goals

Old Trafford is well and truly becoming the formidable destination it was once hallowed for. With this display, United have added to the goal-fest they had heralded when Leeds United were held to a 6-1 battering back in late December. However, the goals haven’t always gone United’s way as was the case with the heavy 1-6 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur back in October.

 

2. Repeat for Southampton

The Saints seem to be unable to catch a break when it comes to heavy defeats. While this one will remain with them for quite a while, it is not too different from when Leicester City beat them 0-9 last campaign. Who is next to benefit from their leaky backline?

 

3. VAR Luck for the Saints

The Saints were certainly not blessed when it came to VAR luck. In their prior game against Aston Villa, they failed to get a penalty during a controversial Matty Cash incident as well as being denied a late equalizer. This fixture was also laden with incidents where the VAR’s calls were arguably too close and gave the benefit of the doubt to United, much to Southampton’s chagrin.

 

4. Greenwood’s Brilliance

Despite not having any goal to his name in the large scoreline, the brilliance of Mason Greenwood cannot be understated. The 19-year-old’s assist to Rashford’s goal was of sublime quality and of the sort that Solskjær will be hoping more of from the forward.

 

5. Anthony Martial’s Second Half

The French striker has been under heavy fire for some time now and this game provided much-needed redemption. The brace was quite something for his confidence but the utter beauty of his first goal cannot be understated in the slightest. What remains to be seen is if he can now net them more often.

 

6. Night to Forget for Bednarek

It is not often that a single player can do heaps of wrong in a single fixture. However, Bednarek will certainly feel that way. The defender first let in an own-goal which added to United’s opening potential. His tackle on Martial then led to a decisive penalty which went a long way in further cementing the poor scoreline. To wrap it all up, the red card he picked up absolutely destroyed any hope for consolation that Southampton may have held.

 

7. Eventful Premier League Night

This game-night certainly illustrated just how exciting the Premier League is and the sheer intensity of the games. In addition to the two red cards during this fixture which saw Alexandre Jankewitz and Jan Bednarek being sent off, the 2-1 loss that Arsenal suffered to Wolverhampton Wanderers also saw David Luiz and Bernd Leno being sent off.

 

8. Fernandes’ PL Drought Over

A period of much pressure for Bruno Fernandes came to an end with this fixture. In addition to netting the penalty, the Portuguese maestro also assisted two goals. Thus, these three goal involvements were crucial given that he was not involved in any goals in his last five Premier League matches.

 

9. Ole’s Tricky Reds

With this heavy win, Man United have now scored more than five goals on eight separate occasions under Ole Gunnar Solskjær. To put that in context, Jose Mourinho, Louis Van Gaal, and David Moyes together managed to achieve that feat only twice. Truly sublime from the former striker’s attacking philosophy.