BURNLEY 0-2 Manchester United: Anthony Martial and Wayne Rooney prove there is life after Zlatan Ibrahimovic and keep Jose Mourinho’s top four hopes alive
For all the obvious benefits that Zlatan Ibrahimovic brings to Manchester United, there is a school of thought that the team’s over-reliance on their Swedish talisman has not always helped the progress of his younger teammates.
Against Chelsea a week ago, and after Ibrahimovic limped out of Thursday’s Europa League quarter-final against Anderlecht with serious knee ligament damage that has ended his season, Marcus Rashford showed what he can do when restored to a central role.
Here at Turf Moor, Anthony Martial provided a similar reminder of his qualities, scoring one goal and helping to set up another as United moved to within one point of fourth-placed Manchester City ahead of Thursday’s derby at the Etihad.
Wayne Rooney even weighed in with his first goal since breaking United’s all-time scoring record at Stoke in January on what was a thoroughly good afternoon for Jose Mourinho in the Lancashire sunshine.
Forced to replace Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo, who also sustained a serious knee injury against Anderlecht, Mourinho made six more changes to a team that had played extra-time in Europe less than three days earlier and it paid off handsomely as United stretched their unbeaten run in the Premier League to 23 games.
Rashford’s pace and powerful running was the key against Chelsea, and Martial brought that to United’s game at Turf Moor. It seems to churlish to find fault with a man who has scored 28 goals for United this season, but they are a more fluid, unpredictable team without Ibrahimovic.
Would you rather have him fit and available? Of course. But the Swede’s absence has presented United’s younger players with an opportunity and so far they are taking it.
Rojo’s enforced layoff has given Mourinho another problem, with Chris Smalling and Phil Jones still sidelined. But Eric Bailly was immense here alongside Daley Blind, snuffing out a Burnley side whose outstanding home form this season has all but guaranteed their top-flight status. Sean Dyche’s side did not manage a shot on target.
If anyone had missed the fact that Ibrahimovic and Rojo had suffered season-ending knee injuries, their teammates made sure they were in everyone’s thoughts by wearing the names of both players on the back of their training kit before kick-off.
Mourinho sprang a surprise by naming Rooney in the starting line-up as the England striker made only his second Premier League start of 2017.
The last one came against Bournemouth on February 4 with Rooney playing a total of just 495 minutes this year.
Meanwhile, Rashford was rested on the bench alongside four other starters against the Belgians – Sergio Romero, Michael Carrick, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Luke Shaw.
‘We have injuries, more injuries and people who are really tired,’ said Mourinho before kick-off. ‘The ones that played 90 intense minutes against Chelsea and two hours against Anderlecht, it is normal that two days later they are not in the best condition. We have to try and protect people and have some freshness.’
The United manager was given another injury scare inside the opening few minutes when Paul Pogba was left hobbling by an untidy challenge from Andre Gray. It was the prelude to some tasty and at times tetchy encounters in the first half, not least between Marouane Fellaini and Joey Barton.
Fellaini was never far from the thick of it, and it was a silly foul by the Belgian on Ashley Barnes that indirectly led to United’s opening goal in the 20th minute.
Former United defender Michael Keane met the freekick with a header that was so wide of goal it bounced away towards the corner flag.
Burnley retrieved it and the ball was played to Barton on the edge of the area, but he allowed Martial to steal it off him and break upfield.
The move was swift and clinical. Martial played the ball wide to Ander Herrera, galloping down the right, and got it back with a first-time pass from the Spaniard. Tom Heaton came out and managed to get his left leg to Martial’s low effort but couldn’t keep it out of the net.
It was the young Frenchman’s 25th goal since moving to Old Trafford in the summer of 2015 and triggered an additional £8.5million payment to his former club Monaco, but United will not mind that.
Their lead was deserved after a bright start. Heaton made a smart save from Rooney at close-range after Martial and Herrera were involved again, before Fellaini headed straight at the Burnley keeper from Young’s corner.
Another error from the home side contributed to United’s second goal in the 38th minute. Burnley looked to have cleared the danger but Robbie Brady gifted possession back to United with a poor header and Pogba slipped the ball through for Martial.
Although Heaton saved this time, Rooney seized on the loose ball and prodded it towards goal, the ball eventually creeping over the line off the inside of Keane’s ankle.
Burnley had played with promise but threatened little in the first half, except for a fine run and cross by Jeff Hendrick that was cut out at the near post by Blind. Their best opportunity arrived three minutes before the break when Gray turned brilliantly in the box to fashion an opening but Bailly made an equally good block to thwart him.
If that suggested that Burnley would raise their game after the break, we were disappointed. Mourinho would have wanted nothing more than United to see out the game comfortably after their recent exertions and that is exactly what happened.
Bailly’s anticipation was still needed on several occasions to snuff out any danger but David De Gea was hardly tested as the game petered out. In fact,
Pogba came closest to a third goal for United following a late run but his shot was just past the post.
The Europa League still looks like United’s best chance of Champions League qualification but victory over City on Thursday would see United replace their neighbours in the top-four. Game on.
SOURCE: DAILYMAIL
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