Man United cruise to a much-needed 3-0 win over Southampton as Matthijs de Ligt, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho strike at St Mary’s.
Matthijs de Ligt, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho scored to give Erik ten Hag a much-needed win at St Mary’s, but it wouldn’t be Manchester United if there wasn’t a scare somewhere along the way.
Andre Onana had to make a first-half penalty save from Cameron Archer as United’s early-season problems threatened to explode into a full-blown crisis on the South Coast against the newly-promoted Saints who have now lost all four of their opening Premier League games and also had captain Jack Stephens sent off for an awful challenge on substitute Garnacho towards the end.
United’s start had comprised of two defeats from three games and another here bordered on the unthinkable. Not since 1986 had the club lost three of the first four, leading to the sacking of Ron Atkinson and arrival of Sir Alex Ferguson.
Fortunately, Onana’s save from Archer was the wake-up call they needed to raise their game and go two up within another four minutes through De Ligt’s first goal for the club since signing from Bayern Munich and Rashford’s first in six months since the FA Cup quarter-final win over Liverpool at Old Trafford.
This result will take some of the early-season heat off Ten Hag whose next Premier League game is against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park where a 4-0 defeat last season left his job hanging by a thread.
