Five winners and four losers as Manchester United lose to Fulham in the FA Cup on penalties

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Manchester United are out of the FA Cup after a defeat to Fulham at Old Trafford.

A repeat of the joyous scenes at Wembley in May 2024 won’t be on the cards for Manchester United this year. United were beaten in the last 16 at home to Fulham.

The circumstances of the exit hurt. Manchester United came from a goal down to equalise against Fulham, drawing 1-1, and dominated possession in extra time. Unfortunately they could not make it count and add to Bruno Fernandes’ strike.

United were defeated on penalties, losing the shootout 4-3 at the Stretford End, with Victor Lindelof and Joshua Zirkzee missing their spotkicks. We broke down the winners and losers from the game…

Winners*

* Note the asterisk because these Manchester United won’t feel like winners on a day the team exited the FA Cup. But these five players came out of the game with their reputations enhanced.

Bruno Fernandes: There is only one place to start, Manchester United’s goalscorer Bruno Fernandes. This was his 25 goal contribution of the season, 11 goals and 14 assists.

Fernandes had more shots on target than any United player (3), and created the most chances (4). He really deserved to go through. In a difficult season for the club, Fernandes’ brilliance has been constant.

Chido Obi: Young striker Chido Obi got around 55 minutes of playing time, including extra-time, and Manchester United looked better with him on the pitch.

Chido Obi was more threatening than Rasmus Hojlund, with more overall touches and touches inside the penalty box, and was praised after the game by former Manchester United great Wayne Rooney.

The 17-year-old is a talent worth persisting with, and his first goal for the club will not be far away.

Matthijs de Ligt: Dutch defender Matthijs de Ligt was a titan at the back, putting in a series of robust challenges and matching up to Fulham’s physical threat.

He was a threat at set pieces too, creating two goalscoring chances, in a match where he made more tackles than any player on the pitch (5).

Casemiro: Manchester United fans are agreed that Casemiro does need to be moved on this summer, if possible, with his better years behind him. That does not stop him making an impact now.

The Brazilian came off the bench in the second half and helped to drive United forward towards an equaliser.

He also enjoyed a positive moment when he scored his penalty in the shootout with a thumping finish, briefly redeeming himself for a miss against Coventry City in last season’s semi-final.

Ayden Heaven: A quick word for Manchester United debutant Ayden Heaven, who came off the bench to replace Harry Maguire at the start of extra-time.

Heaven, 18, looked solid, completing 100 per cent of his passes, and making three clearances in total. While he won’t have enjoyed being on the losing side on his debut, Heaven can takes satisfaction in his own performance.

Losers

There were a number of Manchester United players who had less satisfactory games during the FA Cup elimination…

Victor Lindelof: Back in 2023, Victor Lindelof was Manchester United’s hero on penalties when he scored the decisive spot-kick at Wembley in the semi-final against Brighton.

He turned into the villain against Fulham, becoming the first of two players to miss, and this really summed up where he is at right now.

Against Brighton at the time in 2023 he was playing regularly and performing well. This season he has barely been fit, and has not really been called on when he has played.

This penalty miss was the one notable thing Lindelof has done this season, and that’s not a great sign for a player who is expected to be released in June.

Rasmus Hojlund: It has now been 18 games since Rasmus Hojlund scored a goal for Manchester United. That came in the Europa League at the start of December.

His last domestic goal for Manchester United was in October. And he did not look close to scoring in this fixture.

United will persist with Hojlund due to lack of options and not wanting to put too much pressure on Chido Obi – but his form has been disastrous.

Manuel Ugarte: Something went badly wrong for Manuel Ugarte in this game, to be substituted as early as the 53rd minute.

There were two factors. One that Ugarte had picked up a yellow card as he is prone to. The other is that he is less effective when United are playing at home and expected to take initiative.

Ugarte had completed only 13 passes when he was taken off, and for all his strengths, it is games like this that led to PSG cashing in and replacing him with Joao Neves.

Alejandro Garnacho: Alejandro Garnacho has been changing games from the bench when United need him to. But in this game, a cutting edge was required.

Garnacho has not scored a domestic goal under Ruben Amorim, and games like this showed why. He had the chance to win the game in stoppage time of the 90, through on goal, and blew his opportunity, saved low by the goalkeeper.

It was notable that Garnacho did not step up and take a penalty among United’s first five, reflecting his very brittle confidence right now in front of goal.