WEST BROMWICH // Manchester United used to have an indelible association with late goals.
They mislaid their habit of supplying the right sort of drama at the death under David Moyes and, during Louis van Gaal's reign, their strikes have tended to come in the first hour.
Then, finally, there was a welcome reminder of their past to ensure the Dutchman did not suffer the same fate as his sacked predecessor.
United were trailing 2-1 to West Bromwich Albion, who had beaten Moyes’s side by the same scoreline 13 months ago, before Daley Blind curled an 87th-minute shot past Boaz Myhill.
Defeat had been averted, a point procured. In the broader scheme of things, that may not be enough and United are still to win away from home under Van Gaal, but at least they go into potentially season-defining matches against Chelsea and Manchester City having avoided a fourth loss of the campaign.
They could take solace, too, from the character they displayed to twice come from a goal behind.
The catalyst for the initial comeback was another to open his United account, although Marouane Fellaini’s wait extended a year more than the recent signing’s.
Mocked and dropped, injured and ineffective, he provided a belated return on United's £27.5 million (Dh162.3m) investment.
If he was the game-changer, West Brom possessed potent figures in their starting 11.
Stephane Sessegnon and Saido Berahino both scored and starred. Each showed that even the division’s underdogs have quality and Van Gaal was forced to rethink his selection and his side’s approach.
His initial problem was that United were overly timid. Indeed, it took the half-time introduction of the forceful Fellaini to spur them into life.
By then, their shortcomings were apparent as their ever-changing, often unconvincing defence were troubled.
West Brom’s twin assets of pace and movement allowed them to break at pace, led by Berahino, and United are yet to acquire the understanding to respond.
A theme of Van Gaal’s brief reign has been how often they have been exposed and Albion’s opener offered more evidence.
Andre Wisdom advanced into space behind Angel di Maria and delivered a low cross. Sessegnon met it with a magnificent finish, rifling his 20-yard shot past a blameless David de Gea.
It was a reminder of the mercurial Sessegnon’s ability.
Inconsistent as he can be, the Benin international was the best player on the pitch when West Brom won at Old Trafford, and his ability to elude Blind was an indictment of United’s eventual saviour.
Van Gaal gave his side a greater presence in the centre of the park when Fellaini was sent on for Ander Herrera, who played in a corset and may not have fully recovered from his cracked rib.
He made an immediate impact. Within three minutes, he used his magnetic chest control, outmuscled Joleon Lescott and unleashed an unstoppable shot.
For once, the United fans chorused his name; it certainly was not the soundtrack to last season.
United had raised the tempo and, with Di Maria particularly influential, looked the likelier to score next while West Brom had been pegged back for much of the second half. Finishers, though, can distort the pattern of a game.
So Berahino did, latching on to Chris Brunt’s slide-rule pass, springing United’s offside trap and picking out the corner of the goal.
Robin van Persie was the first to threaten a second United equaliser, volleying against the post after Radamel Falcao had come on to partner him in attack.
The Colombian had a nuisance value, and it was apparent again when he served as a distraction for the West Brom defence as Blind curled in his shot to earn a point.
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