With three goals in Manchester United’s FA Cup victory against Newport, Erik ten Hag wouldn’t have been satisfied.
Erik ten Hag, the manager of Manchester United, would have imagined that fielding a potent team against Newport County on Sunday would mean an easy route into the FA Cup fifth round. However, the Red Devils at Rodney Parade were not convincing at all, with three stars standing out as especially disappointing.
Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo gave the visitors a 2-0 lead after 13 minutes as United jumped out to a fast start and showed off their talent.
After that, Ten Hag’s team fell back into their routine, missing a few opportunities and giving up either side of halftime as Newport unexpectedly leveled the score.
After United regained their calm, Antony scored his first goal of the year on minute 68, making the score 3-2. In stoppage time, Rasmus Hojlund scored his fourth goal of the match with his first attempt.
After hours of clubbing in Belfast, Ten Hag picked his strongest lineup, excluding Altay Bayindir over Andre Onana and Antony in place of Marcus Rashford, who reported too sick to train on Friday.
Ten Hag might have been concerned after three games given the M16 giants’ lackluster performance in the run-up to his brief tenure at Old Trafford.
Alejandro Garnacho, who replaced Rashford on the left, frequently looked dangerous and found ways to get past Newport’s defense with his quickness.
But his decision-making in the final third was poor, especially when United boasted a two-goal lead and had a handful of chances to finish the game off. Rasmus Hojlund was audibly livid with the 19-year-old.
