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Manchester United obliterated Barnsley 7-0 in what was without a doubt a highly uneven contest in their Carabao Cup third round clash.
Coming off the back of an emphatic 3-0 win over Southampton in the Premier League, Man United would hope to make quick work of Barnsley as they seek passage to the fourth round of the Carabao Cup. Still, with a heavily altered starting 11, it would be interesting to see how the home team would fare against the clear underdogs.
Despite the gulf in class, it was the underdogs who got off to the quicker start, earning a free kick in the final third when Casemiro committed a foul on the right wing. Fortunately, the incoming cross found the head of Marcus Rashford, with the ball subsequently bouncing off Manuel Ugarte’s head before drifting wide.
It took nine minutes for United to start pushing the visitors’ defence as a Toby Collyer cross rebounded off Christian Eriksen and out for a goal kick. A disappointing start to the match from Erik ten Hag’s unconventional lineup.
A minute later, Marcus Rashford took a threatening shot from within the box which was deflected out for a corner. Eriksen’s cross was a threatening one, however, it drifted too deep to find its target. Rashford was quick to react, however, taking two rapid shots which were both blocked before reaching the goalkeeper. Clearly, this evening’s striker was hungry for more goals following his heroics against Southampton on the weekend.
In the 16th minute, United got the breakthrough they clearly desired. Marcus Rashford buried the ball in the back of the net after being supplied by Alejandro Garnacho on the wing, continuing his recent return to form.
Ugarte showed off his impressive dribbling on the half-hour mark, taking on Luca Connell and gaining some yards before being brought down by the Barnsley player for a free kick. After the restart, United launched an impressive attack, Casemiro providing a slick backheeled through ball to Rashford, who passed back to Garnacho. While he managed to get off a threatening shot, Garnacho’s attempt was saved before the offside flag was raised. It seemed as if it would be just a matter of time before United would double their lead.
Three minutes later, Dalot surged down the right wing, passing to Garnacho whose snapshot was blocked by the Barnsley defence. Seconds after the clearance, United were on the counter yet again, with Antony being brought down in the box by the keeper to win a penalty.
Antony placed the ball on the penalty spot, taking a cool and composed run-up before slotting the ball into the far right corner, out of the goalkeeper’s reach. 2-0 to United.
Six minutes before the break, Garnacho was fast approaching the box, sending the ball to Eriksen in the centre, only for his pass to be intercepted. Another close scoring opportunity for Ten Hag’s men.
Not even a minute later, the Argentine was at it again, this time making a solo run into the box before sending a misfired pass to Rashford at the last moment. Garnacho will need to improve his decision-making if he hopes to get on the scoresheet.
United fans were in a panic in the 42nd minute when Ugarte collapsed after clashing with Barnsley captain Connell while gunning for the ball. Fortunately, the new signing was able to return to his feet moments later.
On the stroke of half-time, Garnacho got the goal he craved. After displaying some fancy footwork, Rashford completed his dribble on the edge of the box by threading a through ball to Garnacho, who beat two defenders to slot the ball past the keeper into the bottom right corner of the net.
As the half-time whistle blew, United could take satisfaction with their comfortable 3-0 lead. Ten Hag’s side should comfortably secure the win, barring any major mishaps.
Three minutes into the second half, Garnacho struck again. The winger made a blistering run forward, collecting a pass from Eriksen at the halfway line before sprinting all the way into the box and putting the ball past the keeper for United’s fourth goal.
52 minutes in, United received a free kick, which Rashford stepped up to take. While the shot was on target, the Barnsley keeper did well to parry.
Just five minutes later, United struck again, and this time, it was Garnacho with the assist. He slotted a loose ball through the centre to Rashford, who darted to the left of the keeper before letting rip. With less than an hour on the clock, United were truly running riot.
In the 59th minute, Ugarte committed a wreckless challenge on Stephen Humphrys to hand the visitors a free kick. The Uruguayan would need to exhibit a cooler head in order to avoid an unnecessary booking later on.
62 minutes in, Ten Hag decided to shake things up with three changes. Ugarte was substituted for Bruno Fernandes, Dalot came off for Noussair Mazraoui, and Rashford ended up not getting a hat trick as he made way for Joshua Zirkzee.
Right after, Antony curled a threatening shot toward the far post, with the keeper barely managing to tip his effort over the bar.
In the 68th minute, Garnacho ballooned a close-range shot over the crossbar, missing a prime opportunity to secure his hat-trick.
With 15 minutes to go, Antony took a promising shot from the right, forcing the keeper to perform a diving save.
In the 77th minute, a tired Evans was substituted for Matthijs de Ligt, a surprise goal scorer in the previous match against Southampton. After the restart, Zirkzee wasted a decent scoring opportunity, thumping the ball wide. It appears as if the Dutch forward still needs to work on becoming more clinical upfront.
10 minutes from time, it was Eriksen’s turn to get in on the action. After starting the counter-attack by passing to Garnacho, Eriksen sprinted forward as Fernandes received the ball. Once the United skipper looked up, Eriksen was perfectly placed to receive the pass, slotting the ball into the back of the net with ease just metres out. 6-0 to a dominant United.
Sadly for Garnacho, like Rashford he too would not get a chance to secure his hat-trick as he made way for Amad Diallo with seven minutes of normal time to play.
Right after the resumption of play, Eriksen struck again, thumping in a thunderous shot from the edge of the box that the keeper had no chance of saving. 7-0 to United.
On the stroke of 90 minutes, Zirkzee took a close-range grounded shot from the left that the keeper did well to save, adding to the forward’s frustrations.
Ultimately, it was smooth sailing for United, who were clearly streets ahead of their League One opposition. United will hope to continue this form when they face Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Saturday.
Starting XI: Bayindir, Maguire, Rashford, Eriksen, Garnacho, Casemiro, Dalot, Antony, Ugarte, Evans, Collyer
Subs: Fernandes, Zirkzee, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Amad
Feature image Stu Forster via Getty Images
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