Aston Villa, where Manchester United visit on Thursday evening, was where Alex Ferguson fielded a very young side on the opening day of the 1995/96 season. United were defeated 3-1, Alan Hansen’s “you don't win anything with kids” quote from that day was later immortalised after a young United side won the league and the FA Cup that season.
The current United side is even younger. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team were never in the race to win the league this season, but could win the FA Cup, and have done better in Europe than the 1995/96 squad. Winning the Europa League next month is another chance of a trophy, another way of getting into the Champions League.
Such has been United’s good form in their 16 game unbeaten run that if the team who’d slipped as low as 14th in October win their remaining five games then they’ll be in the Champions League. Not that Solskjaer is satisfied with being in fifth, or United’s current league run.
“Sixteen games unbeaten gives us more confidence, but 16 games is nowhere near what a Man United team should strive towards,” he said ahead of the Villa match. “We can still go many more games unbeaten if we focus on the right things.”
That run was implausible when United last met Villa at the start of December. A 2-2 draw at Old Trafford meant United had won only four of their opening 14 league games.
Solskjaer was criticised for starting the season without a recognised No 9 after sanctioning the sale of Romelu Lukaku to Inter Milan and the loan of Alexis Sanchez, who could also play centrally, to the same club.
Though their departure wasn’t as strongly criticised as the sales of Mark Hughes, Paul Ince and Andrei Kanchelskis were in 1995, the lack of replacements was.
"This is not a popularity contest and I will make decisions that I think will be for the benefit of the club," Solskjaer told The National when asked if he felt vindicated for the changes he made last summer.
“The decisions we’ve made last summer and throughout January bringing players in and allowing players to move on, in my mind, were always for the good on the club and the team. Both in giving youngsters a chance and also in giving trust to the other ones. And also accepting that some players have been great servants of the club. For me, I would still make the same decisions if I could go back twelve months or six months.”
On Saturday, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford became the first pair of United strikers since 2011 to score 20 goals in a season. Mason Greenwood has scored 14 goals in his breakthrough term.
________________
Manchester United v Bournemouth ratings
-
David de Gea - 5. Beaten at the near post for the opening goal. Several poor passes out, too. Not good enough against Bournemouth. Reuters -
Aaron Wan-Bissaka - 7: Lively and again made more tackles and interceptions than any other player. Incredible ball for Rashford to score a sixth. Shame Rashford was offside. Just. Reuters -
Harry Maguire - 5: Nutmegged by Junior Stanislas for the game’s opening goal and less assured than usual. Played every minute of every league game and he’s been a fine signing, but poorest performance for the club. EPA -
Victor Lindelof - 6: More blocks and clearances than any other player – notable since he was taken off at half time after struggling with his back. AFP -
Luke Shaw - 7: Gets into the advanced positions demanded by his manager and had a chance to score at the end. Reuters -
Paul Pogba - 7: Won his aerial duels, impressive curling late free kick. Quieter than against Brighton, but a top class footballer who is enjoying his role in this attacking side alongside Fernandes. EPA -
Nemanja Matic - 6: A couple of sloppy passes. He’s been that good that when he gives the ball away we notice. Reuters -
Bruno Fernandes - 9: Missed a chance he should have scored, then made two first half assists and scored another goal, the fifth with a fine free-kick. Proper technician. Involved in 10 goals in nine Premier League games as he brings joy to the United world. EPA -
Mason Greenwood - 8: Equalised for his 14th goal of the season after a sublime first touch and then his second was another lethal, powerful finish. Smashed the fourth in with almost no back lift. Reuters -
Marcus Rashford - 7: Cool penalty (his side’s 17th of the season) struck into the bottom of the net to put United ahead. Super early ball for Bruno Fernandes too. Had an 18th minute free kick on target and saved. Four shots – more than any other player. Better. EPA -
Anthony Martial - 8: Unwanted recipient of Jefferson Lemar’s studs in his knee, but incredible strike for United’s third. And, with Rashford goals added, the pair became the first since 2011 to get 20 in a season for United. Frenchman looks fitter, happier, more productive. AFP -
SUBS: Eric Bailly (on for Lindelof, 45') - 6: On for Lindelof at half time and penalty awarded against him within minutes. Reuters -
Fred (On for Matic, 67') - 6: Steady Eddie. AFP -
Odion Ighalo (on for Rashford, 80') - 5: Put a shot wide after being set up by Fernandes, who else? EPA -
Juan Mata (on for Martial, 75') - 6: Busy bee brought onto take the sting out of a Bournemouth defence that had been busier than its beach. Combined well with Fernandes. Overlooked for a late free-kick. EPA -
Daniel James (on for Greenwood, 75') - 6: Lively. Needs a goal. EPA -
Aaron Ramsdale - 5: Got a palm to Greenwood's first, fingertips to Rashford's penalty but couldn't get close to any of United's other goals. AFP -
Adam Smith - 6: Unlucky to give away the penalty on a day when the whole Bournemouth team toiled. Reuters -
Nathan Ake - 6: Dutchman stemmed the tide with vital blocks. Reuters -
Lloyd Kelly - 5: His foul on Martial that led to the free kick for United's fifth was unnecessary but involved in some good duels with the Frenchman otherwise. EPA -
Lewis Cook - 5: Chased shadows in Bournemouth's midfield. Reuters -
Diego Rico - 5: Spent most of his afternoon trying to contain Greenwood and was a non-entity in attack. Reuters -
Jefferson Lerma - 5: Booked for a reckless challenge in the first half and too often played his team in trouble in dangerous areas. Reuters -
David Brooks - 5: Annonymous before being replaced at the interval. AFP -
Junior Stanislas - 7: Superb skill to evade Maguire and even better finish from a tight angle to beat De Gea for Bournemouth's first. EPA -
Dominic Solanke - 5: Offered little threat or support for King. EPA -
Joshua King - 7: Worked Lindelof's channel well in the first half and kept up his fine record of scoring against his former club with a cool penalty in the second. Reuters -
SUBS: Arnaut Groeneveld (on for Brooks, 45') - 6: Threatened with his pace and saw a goal chalked off for offside. Reuters -
Harry Wilson (on for Cook, 66') - 5: United were rampant by the time the Welshman came to the party. EPA -
Dan Gosling (on for Stanislas, 66') - 5: Worked hard to hustle United's midfield. AFP -
Philip Billing (on for Solanke, 66') - 5: Dane knows what it is to suffer relegation with Huddersfield and is likely to experience it again. Reuters -
Jack Stacey (on for Smith, 77') - 5: Nothing the defender could do to influence the game. EPA
________________
Villa are facing an immediate relegation from the Premier League and are four points from safety, with a game in hand on Watford above them in 17th. Watford were the last team Villa beat in the league and Dean Smith’s side have lost seven and drawn two of the nine league games since.
“Villa can hold their own and their games have been tight,” said Solskjaer.
“It’s clear that they’ve worked on their shape and their counter attacks are one of the most powerful ones in the league. They spring quickly so you have to be ready for that and on set plays they have good delivery and good contact players with size. And there are some individual players there.”
Talking of the 2-2 result at Old Trafford when Jack Grealish was man of the match and subsequently linked with a move to Old Trafford, Solskjaer said: “Villa caused us some problems, both [Jack] Grealish coming in off the left and [Anwar] El Ghazi on the right. He [Grealish] scored a fantastic goal and there has been lots said about him. We need to be aware of him because whether he’s on the left, the middle or the right, what he does is attract players and create space for others. There’s not just one player in that team that could cause us problems.”
Solskjaer is happy with his team and he started the same lineup for the third successive game against Bournemouth. If Victor Lindelof it will likely be extended to a fourth.
This is a winning team where “Bruno [Fernandes] has come in and lifted everyone else” and Solskjaer thinks they’ll need to win all five league games to guarantee a place in the top four.
“Yes,” he said. “The teams around are playing well but there are so many games, we’re just focussing on them one by one. We can't rely on help from anyone else. We have to do it ourselves, to grow as a team and know that going into next season we can put a different challenge to the teams in the front of us.”
