Manchester United 0 – 2 Crystal Palace
Jean-Philippe Mateta’s brace secured a stunning victory for Crystal Palace at Old Trafford.
Manchester United’s struggles at home continued as they failed to break free from their disappointing form. Despite winning three consecutive matches across all competitions, they once again tasted defeat at Old Trafford. Mateta’s two second-half goals left United reeling.
On Sunday, Crystal Palace claimed a 2-0 victory over a lackluster United in the Premier League. The French forward struck twice after halftime, sealing the win for the visitors.
United had already suffered a 3-1 defeat to Brighton in their previous home match, and once again, Bruno Fernandes, Garnacho, and their teammates left the Old Trafford faithful frustrated.
This marked United’s seventh home defeat in the league this season. With just eight wins and five draws from 24 matches, they now sit 13th in the table with 29 points. Palace, with 30 points from the same number of matches, have moved ahead of them.
Despite dominating 67% of possession and attempting 17 shots, United could only hit the target twice. In contrast, Palace managed three shots on target from 11 attempts and made two of them count.
The visitors were the better side in the first half, creating several promising chances.
Palace broke the deadlock in the 64th minute. A headed clearance looped over United goalkeeper André Onana, struck the crossbar, and fell kindly to an unmarked Mateta, who calmly slotted it home.
United tried to ramp up the pressure but remained toothless in attack. Adding to their woes, defender Lisandro Martínez was stretchered off with an injury late in the game.
Shortly after, Mateta struck again, finishing off a pass from a teammate to beat Onana for the second time, sealing another painful home defeat for United.
