Manchester United vs Wolves: Martial and Garnacho boost Red Devils’ top four hopes

Manchester United vs Wolves: Martial and Garnacho boost Red Devils’ top four hopes

Joba Ogunwale 17:04 - 13.05.2023

Manchester United boosted their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League with a comfortable victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Goals from Anthony Martial and Alejandro Garnacho helped Manchester United to a 2-0 win over Wolves in their Premier League clash at Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon.

Man Utd had been struggling recently, but the win against Julen Lopetegui’s men put them firmly position to qualify for next season’s Champions League

How it happened 

The Red Devils came into the game needing to win to stay clear of Liverpool and stay in touch with Newcastle in the battle for the top four. 

Erik Ten Hag’s men started on the front foot as expected, with Wolves offering little to no threat after their safety was confirmed just before kickoff. 

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.ng/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

The home side had a major share of the ball, with Antony proving to be a menace on the flank. The Brazil international had the first chance of the game after a loose pass fell into this path, but he could not hit the target despite his best efforts. 

Antony continued to be Man Utd’s biggest attacking threat, and he eventually played a role in the opener. 

Ten Hag’s men took the lead midway through the first half as Bruno Fernandes found Anthony with a perfect pass before the Brazilian squared for Anthony Martial for the opener.

https://twitter.com/SSFootball/status/1657396433274941441

The goal settled all nerves and fueled Man Utd as they went in search of a second. However, they could not find a second before the break. 

Garnacho kills off Wolves 

Wolves started the second half better, with the away side causing Man Utd a few troubles at the back. 

But despite a sustained period of possession, Lopetegui’s men could not test Man Utd’s goalkeeper David de Gea. 

Instead, it was the home side that got close on many occasions, with Antony firing wide just off the post. 

Jadon Sancho was also denied by Dan Bentley in Wolves’ goal before Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro suffered the same fate. 

It looked like United would not double their lead until Fernandes set up Garnacho in the final minute of added time, with the Argentine killing off Wolves hopes with a composed finish. 

var widgetLoaderConfig = widgetLoaderConfig || { CDN_URL: 'https://widgets.sportal365.com', APP_LINK: 'desktop', API_URL: 'https://africa.football.api.sportal365.com/', API_KEY: '2f852b4de2f3a5cf3188e74b33087bb4:2c18422f8e826a7d11aeed52edb2449e', LANG: 'en', REQUEST_INTERVAL: 30, ENABLE_BET_SLIP: false, AUTHOR: false, THEME: "light", TOURNAMENT_ORDER: "pulse_nigeria", LINK_OPTIONS_V2: { 'player' : { 'url': '/football/player/{playerId}' }, 'team' : { 'url': '/football/{teamId}' }, 'tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}' }, 'match': { 'url' : '/football/match/{matchId}', 'sort': { 'criteria': 'alphabetically', 'direction': 'asc' } }, 'configuration': { 'newWindow': false }, 'standings_tournament': { 'url': '/football/competition/{tournamentId}/standings' } } }; if (!document.querySelector('script[src="https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js"]')) { window.setTimeout(function () { let scriptCss = document.createElement('link'); scriptCss.href = 'https://www.pulsesports.ng/css/sport-widgets.css?v=1668785443'; scriptCss.rel = 'stylesheet'; scriptCss.type = 'text/css'; document.body.appendChild(scriptCss); let scriptTag = document.createElement('script'); scriptTag.src = 'https://widgets.sportal365.com/loader.bundle.min.js'; scriptTag.defer = true; scriptTag.onload = function () { window.setTimeout(function () { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }, 200); }; document.head.appendChild(scriptTag); }, 0); } else { new SMPWidgetsLoader(widgetLoaderConfig); }

Garnacho’s strike turned out to be the last real action of the game as United moved level on points with Newcastle and four points clear of Liverpool.

Related content