Manchester United Secures Hard-Fought Victory Against Wolves
Manchester United secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory against Wolverhampton Wanderers, courtesy of Raphael Varane’s close-range header in their Premier League encounter at Old Trafford.
The hosts stared with Marcus Rasford in attack, with Antony and Alejandro Garnacho supporting on the wings. Wolves, featured a front-two of Matheus Cunha and Pablo Sarabia as they looked to cause an upset.
Brazil forward Cunha missed a golden opportunity to put Wolves ahead early in the second half in what was a lively performance. Both sides created chances but would not find the net in the first half.
Manchester United survived several Wolves missed opportunities in the first half but they were determined to do better in the second half.
As the game went on, Wolves had the better of the chances before Varane’s 76th-minute winner for Manchester United. The Frenchman rose highest to head home beyond the reach of Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa.
There were still opportunities for Wolves as substitute Fabio Silva twice forced United’s new goalkeeper Andre Onana into smart saves late in the game. The goalkeeper then clattered into Wolves substitute Sasa Kalajdzic as he arrived late to try and punch clear a cross, but got nowhere near the ball and left the striker on the ground.
Referee Simon Hooper saw nothing wrong and with a clear directive for VAR to only intervene in clear and obvious errors, there was no call to look again at the incident as the match finished 1-0 to United.
Raphael Varane’s late header is enough for Man Utd to take all three points in their #PL season opener 👊#MUNWOL pic.twitter.com/1Q6VdMBr04
— Premier League (@premierleague) August 14, 2023
“It was a tough game,” said Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag after the match. “We can do a lot of things better but also I see a lot of positive things.”
“I saw six or seven good high-ball regains and then we have to take more from the turnovers. In a low block, we defended for our lives and we survived it.”
Erik ten Hag had stressed the need for his team to “raise the bar” before kick-off but it was a passive display from United in front of their own supporters.
Tottenham will host Manchester United next Saturday while Wolves host Brighton & Hove Albion on the same day at Molineux stadium.
