Machester United 1 West Brom 2 Match Report

Manchester United slipped to a first home defeat of the season as West Bromwich Albion posted a shock 2-1 victory over the Barclays Premier League champions at Old Trafford.

 

Despite bouncing back from last weekend’s Manchester derby defeat with a rousing Capital One Cup victory over Liverpool in midweek, David Moyes’ side were unable to break down the well-drilled visitors in open play, and succumbed to two fine goals. A solo effort from Morgan Amalfitano and Saido Berahino's low strike sandwiched a Wayne Rooney free-kick, but United came no closer to an equaliser than in an injury-time flurry when Michael Carrick's shot was beaten away and substitute Adnan Januzaj fired off-target.

Nani had provided United's most fruitful attacking outlet for most of the afternoon, slinging in several superb crosses, two of which were narrowly ahead of Chicharito while another was headed straight at Boaz Myhill by Rooney. It was the visitors, however, who spurned the clearest two openings of the first half, as Berahino glanced a header just wide and Stephane Sessegnon blazed horribly over from a corner.

Januzaj was introduced at half-time in place of Shinji Kagawa, but it was the visitors who forged ahead when Amalfitano surged towards goal and cut infield before lifting an impudent finish over David De Gea. The Baggies' celebrations were quickly cut short, however, as Rooney whipped a free-kick between the visitors' wall and a cluster of onrushing players to level the scores within three minutes, but to their credit, West Brom immediately hit back.

Jonas Olsson headed Amalfitano's corner against the United crossbar, and it was in-keeping with play when Berahino lashed a 20-yard effort past De Gea with 23 minutes remaining. The home support briefly thought United had levelled when substitute Marouane Fellaini slid home Nani's cross, but the Belgian was correctly flagged offside and, after a late surge in which Myhill beat away Carrick's shot and Januzaj fizzed an effort past the top corner, the Reds were beaten.