On a day when Mason Mount returned to the Manchester United bench, the 20-time English champions recorded a comfortable 3-0 Premier League victory against Leicester City.
Ruben Amorim’s side made the trip to a wounded King Power Stadium off the back of a midweek mauling of Real Sociedad, with a hint of confidence growing in the Red ranks.
Victor Lindelof, Manuel Ugarte and Christian Eriksen came into the starting XI, with the hugely impressive Ayden Heaven retaining his place in the back three.
Following a relatively pedestrian opening 20 minutes, Eriksen rattled the woodwork from distance after a corner routine taken directly from the training ground. He was within millimetres of a catalogue strike.
But that merely encouraged the visitors, inevitably taking the lead through Rasmus Hojlund and his first goal since a European brace against Viktoria Plzen in December.
The home side continued to fight for a breakthrough but struggled to click in the final third, as United held a comfortable half-time lead and the Foxes goal-drought continued.
Much to the dismay of everyone in the ground, Heaven required a stretcher to leave the field within minutes of the restart, having fallen awkwardly on his ankle in a sickening moment. Toby Collyer replaced the former Arsenal defender.
A prolonged period of inactivity didn’t faze United and Alejandro Garnacho thought he had doubled the lead after 57 minutes, only for VAR to interject with a marginal offside call.
But the Argentine was not to be denied, and he powered home a fine effort within 10 minutes following a prodded pass from his Portuguese captain in the area.
Harry Amass entered proceedings seconds later for his senior debut, joining Casemiro and Joshua Zirkzee in a trio of changes to extend playing time throughout the remaining squad members.
Inevitably, Bruno laid the cherry on the cake with another stellar finish from distance in the 90th minute, taking his tally to 16 goals in all competitions this season. Not bad for a bluffer, eh?
United climbed above Spurs and Everton to 13th in the Premier League ahead of a two-week international break and have not lost an outing in 90 minutes since February 16th.
A routine victory for an injured Manchester United outfit
Whisper it quietly, but the Ruben Amorim touch is beginning to yield impressive results, with his side unbeaten in four consecutive Premier League fixtures alongside safe passage to the Europa League quarter-finals.
Truthfully, United were comfortable throughout and didn’t need to leave second gear, with their hosts cutting the figure of a team resigned to Championship football.
Notably, the Reds have now beaten Leicester four times in all competitions this campaign, equalling the accomplishment achieved against Sheffield Wednesday (93-94), Chelsea (10-11), and Nottingham Forest (22-23).
The injury to Heaven is an undeniable black mark on an otherwise routine evening, and eager Reds will be keen to gain information about the significance of his issue.
International football takes centre stage with a two-week break for Amorim to build further momentum in the North West, ahead of a trip to Nottingham Forest in April.
How do you feel following another routine victory for Manchester United against Leicester? Let us know in the comments or across our social channels.
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