It was another game of two halves for Manchester United at Burnley last night.
Just like on Friday night against Middlesbrough, United should have been out of sight before half-time with the chances they had.
There were harshly disallowed goals as well, but then in the second half, the level of performance dropped right off and United needed David de Gea to produce another moment of brilliance to preserve the eventual 1-1 draw.
De Gea made a sprawling save down to his right from Burnley new-boy Wout Weghorst in the second half, and it even drew praise from Clarets boss Sean Dyche after the game.
Speaking at his post-match press conference, Dyche said: “[Weghorst] was very unlucky to not score.
“I thought it was a top save from their keeper, de Gea from his shot from distance. The goal was an excellent goal and combination. Jay Rodriguez put Maguire in a nightmare situation because if he touches him, he’s in trouble so he has to let him score.”
On Maguire, Dyche was asked whether the England international should have been sent off for the incident which saw him booked in the second half and said: “Is that a sending off? It could be.
“I personally feel the Maguire decision was right. I don’t really want to see players sent off for that because the ball is running and not spinning back or slowing down.”
From a position where the game was in the palm of their hands, United needed another fantastic stop from de Gea to stop them from another loss in the second half.
The performance ebbed away and United have lost the momentum generated by the back-to-back victories before the short international break.
De Gea was given the night off against Middlesbrough. Dean Henderson could not have done anything about the goal but failed to save a spot-kick.
The Spaniard continued his impressive season at Turf Moor, and it looks like another campaign where he keeps his level higher than many – if not all – of his teammates.
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