Manchester United fell short of the team’s objective to win away at Real Sociedad by two clear goals.
United won 1-0 thanks to an Alejandro Garnacho strike, having to settle for second place in the table on goal difference.
Despite ‘only’ winning 1-0, the team were able to come away from the game with some pride, having extended an impressive run of victories and clean sheets.
United’s players are taking the positives from a hard fought victory in Spain, a country in which the team don’t have the best record on their travels in recent years.
Now preparations are beginning for Sunday’s Premier League match against Unai Emery’s Aston Villa, a game Bruno Fernandes is suspended for.
Fernandes and De Gea react to United win
Garnacho had put United up in the 17th minute and at that stage, Manchester United had looked on course to record the victory required.
However, this was the only shot on target the team managed all game, with the second half particularly disjointed.
The positives were that United were hard to beat, securing a win they can still be proud of, and both Bruno Fernandes and David de Gea’s messages after the game reflected this.
De Gea is right that United are continuing to build a strong team under Erik ten Hag. The fruits of this are very evident in the defensive run the team are putting together, with six clean sheets in the last seven games.
United’s trouble is in the final third, and this wasn’t helped by the absences of Anthony Martial, Antony, and Jadon Sancho.
To compound United’s issues, Marcus Rashford was judged to be not fit enough to start the game, leaving United light up front.
Alejandro Garnacho did all that could be asked of him, but this is an area the team will need to strengthen in the upcoming transfer windows.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
