/>

Manchester United 2 Burnley 2: Lindelof salvages dramatic draw

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's winning run with Manchester United was ended by Burnley, but it came within minutes of a shock defeat.

Published : Jan 30, 2019 08:54 IST

Victor Lindelof (R) turned in a rebound in the dying minutes to rescue a share of the spoils.
Victor Lindelof (R) turned in a rebound in the dying minutes to rescue a share of the spoils.
lightbox-info

Victor Lindelof (R) turned in a rebound in the dying minutes to rescue a share of the spoils.

Manchester United scored two late goals in the space of five minutes as it came from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Burnley at Old Trafford on Tuesday.

Ashley Barnes and Chris Wood appeared to have set Burnley on course for a first away win against United since September 1962 and inflict a first defeat on caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. However, Paul Pogba's 87th-minute penalty and an injury-time strike from Victor Lindelof - his first for the club - salvaged a point for the home side that could yet prove important in the race for the top four.

Marcus Rashford scuffed a glorious early chance wide and Barnes could have punished that miss were it not for a vital interception by the returning Phil Jones. Pogba had the ball in the net but was pulled up by a correct offside call, as United endured a frustrating end to a half in which it struggled to reach top gear and failed to have a shot on target.

And Old Trafford was stunned six minutes after the restart, when Barnes fired high into the net from just inside the box after Andreas Pereira was robbed of possession by Jack Cork.

barnesjpg
Ashley Barnes opened the scoring for Burnley as it capitalised on a mistake by Andreas Pereira just outside the Manchester United box.
 

United at last upped the tempo and Tom Heaton denied Rashford from distance before producing a stunning stop to claw the ball away from the right-hand post after Romelu Lukaku's touch.

A poor touch from Rashford spoiled another good chance for United, and it was duly punished once again, with Wood rising high to nod home Ashley Westwood's cross.

United surged forward and Pogba swept a spot-kick into the top-left corner to give it some hope, after Jeff Hendrick had tugged down Jesse Lingard. And in the second minute of injury time, Lindelof turned in the rebound to rescue a share of the spoils after Heaton kept out Alexis Sanchez's header.

RELATED | Newcastle United 2 Manchester City 1: Champion suffers shock loss to spoil Guardiola's landmark

What does it mean? No record for Solskjaer as top-four hopes suffer blow

Solskjaer failed to become the first manager to win his first seven Premier League matches in charge of a club, although this was very nearly a more damaging result than it proved to be.

Despite Lindelof's dramatic leveller, Arsenal's win over Cardiff City sees United slip two points behind the Gunners, and it will be five adrift of the top-four places if Chelsea beats Bournemouth on Wednesday.

Burnley is now four points clear of the bottom three, although conceding such a late equaliser after so much good defensive work will have undoubtedly hurt.

pogba-APjpg
Paul Pogba halved the deficit for Manchester United, striking a penalty into the top-left corner.
 

A Barnes-torming showing from Burnley's number 10

Barnes did so much good work pressing United's centre-backs to limit their build-up play, he deserved his goal. And he took it in spectacular style.

Has Pereira blown his chance?

This was Pereira's first league start since August and it did not go to plan. The midfielder was ineffective in the first half and gifted Cork the ball to allow Barnes to break the deadlock before being withdrawn. How many more opportunities will he get in the United first team?

RELATED | Arsenal 2 Cardiff City 1: Aubameyang, Lacazette see Gunners bounce back

 

What's next?

United heads to Leicester City on Sunday, the day after Burnley hosts Southampton.

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment