Hutchison: Man United won 3 much-needed points against Burnley
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Don Hutchison analyzes Manchester United’s 1-0 win over Burnley
Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes struck a superb volley to seal a 1-0 win over Burnley in the Premier League on Saturday as Erik ten Hag’s side ended a three-match losing streak in all competitions.
The Portuguese latched on to a pinpoint pass from Jonny Evans just before half-time to get past Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford for the first time.
Evans was denied a goal for United, although Burnley had plenty of chances and were unfortunately behind at the break.
The away team played more comfortably after the break thanks to Burnley’s patient playing style, unable to create clear opportunities. United’s third win of the season moved them up to eighth in the table with nine points from six games.
Burnley have one point after five games and are bottom of the table on goal difference.
After back-to-back defeats to Arsenal and Brighton & Hove Albion as well as Wednesday’s defeat to Bayern Munich, the pressure is on Ten Hag.
But when the captain needed to set an example, Fernandes provided a valuable moment to get United back on track.
Evans, whose header had earlier been ruled out for offside after a VAR check, played a perfect pass past the Burnley defense and as the ball dropped, Fernandes sent a right-footed volley straight across. into the net. It was a great moment for Evans, 35, who returned to the club on a one-year deal at the end of the season and made his first appearance for United since 2015.
“This club, if you don’t win games you will be criticized,” Evans told TNT Sports. “Some of the younger players haven’t experienced that yet, but hopefully I can come on and add a bit of composure. Hopefully it can start something for us.”
Coach Ten Hag said his team showed great team spirit and United must definitely be determined to deal with Burnley’s intense pressure from the beginning.
United goalkeeper André Onana, whose mistake cost Bayern dearly in midweek, made a brilliant early save to keep out Zeki Amdouni’s header. Amdouni then looked poised to score from Aaron Ramsey’s cross, but his shot went wide.
United’s luck was proven when Evans headed home a Sergio Reguilón shot that was ruled out for offside.
But Fernandes answered the call and sent the away fans home with a smile on his face.
Video credit: Manchester United website
“We knew we were going through a tough time, but we knew we could get through it,” Fernandes said. “Obviously today’s performance wasn’t the best, but we got the three points, that’s the most important thing.”