Ed Woodward won 2-0 – Mourinho dedicates win to United executive after plane protest

Manchester United fans protested against Ed Woodward before their team's win over Burnley, prompting an amusing response from Jose Mourinho.

Published : Sep 03, 2018 10:27 IST

Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward (L) received backlash from Manchester United fans before the match against Burnley.
Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward (L) received backlash from Manchester United fans before the match against Burnley.
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Manchester United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward (L) received backlash from Manchester United fans before the match against Burnley.

Jose Mourinho appeared to dedicate Manchester United's win over Burnley to Ed Woodward after fans protested against the executive vice-chairman before the match.

RELATED | Protest banner flown over Turf Moor as fans turn on Woodward

United bounced back from defeats to Brighton and Hove Albion and Tottenham with a deserved 2-0 victory at Turf Moor, Romelu Lukaku scoring both goals for the visitor.

A group of fans paid for a plane to fly over the ground bearing a banner that read 'Ed Woodward A Specialist In Failure' before kick-off, while the visiting fans showed their support for the under-fire Mourinho by chanting his name for much of the contest.

The plane protest underlined the fact that a number of fans are siding with the manager following a tense transfer window in which several Mourinho targets were said to have been vetoed by Woodward,

When asked for his response to the banner, however, Mourinho offered an amusing response.

RELATED | Lukaku brace gets United back to winning ways

"I am not looking to the sky unless I am asking the guy for help!" he told a news conference. "I didn't see planes but Ed Woodward won 2-0 this afternoon."

United deserved to win what proved to be an eventful game on Sunday, with Paul Pogba missing a penalty and Marcus Rashford earning a straight red card in the space of two second-half minutes.

Burnley battled for a way back into the match but could not avoid a third straight league defeat, which came at the end of a week when it got knocked out of the Europa League play-offs by Olympiacos.

"Disappointment is quickly thought about in the same process as the reality," manager Sean Dyche reflected to BBC Sport . "Manchester United are a very good side. They started hard and fast with the ball and defended strong.

RELATED | Mourinho brands Rashford 'naive' for red card

"Sometimes there is balance to the disappointment. We got about them; the goal on half-time is a sickener for us. I thought Lukaku was excellent. It's a strange one because we come out of a useful period for experience but a tough period."

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