Manchester United 2 Burnley 2: Lingard double rescues Mourinho's men
Jesse Lingard's double spared Manchester United's blushes against Burnley, which almost secured a first win at Old Trafford since 1962.
Published : Dec 26, 2017 23:03 IST
Manchester United's lingering Premier League title hopes were dealt another blow despite it coming from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Burnley on Tuesday.
Jose Mourinho's side was facing a defeat at Old Trafford for only the second time this year thanks to first-half goals from Ashley Barnes and Steven Defour, before Jesse Lingard came off the bench to earn his side a point.
It means United has still only lost to Manchester City at home in 2017, but it will be 15 points behind the runaway Premier League leader if Pep Guardiola's side beat Newcastle United on Wednesday.
The Red Devils endured a tough week before Christmas as they exited the EFL Cup to Bristol City before conceding a last-minute equaliser in a 2-2 league draw with Leicester City, and they found themselves behind after only three minutes when Barnes capitalised on their failure to defend a free-kick.
United pushed for an equaliser, but were dealt a sucker punch when Defour, once linked with a move to the club, struck a superb free-kick before the interval.
Lingard came off the bench to flick home and give his side a lifeline, and Burnley was denied a first away league win over United since September 1962 when the England international fired home in second-half injury time.
The draw sees Burnley stay in seventh place and keeps United in second, one point above Chelsea, but the result has surely struck a hammer blow to their hopes of hauling in its neighbour at the summit.