Man Utd 0 Wolves 1: Yet another Premier League defeat – but at least youngsters impressed

Manchester United’s season has long revolved around the Europa League, not domestic matters, and this defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers underlined that fact.

Head coach Ruben Amorim made a raft of changes to his starting XI for a home league game that will ultimately mean little to the club’s campaign and the visitors made the most of it, thanks to Pablo Sarabia’s brilliant free-kick goal late in the second half.

We analyse the major talking points after yet another United loss.

Does this defeat matter?

Yes and no.

This was United’s 15th league defeat of the season, which is the most they’ve had in one campaign since 1989-90, so it is another unwanted record for Ruben Amorim (though four of the losses were on Erik ten Hag’s watch, of course).

When Vitor Pereira replaced Gary O’Neil as Wolves’ head coach in December, they were 13 points behind United. This win, their fifth in a row and United’s eighth league defeat of the season at home, means the teams are now level on points.

If Tottenham beat visitors Nottingham Forest on Monday, United will fall to 15th. Fourth-bottom West Ham are only two points behind them. It goes without saying that it is an unacceptable position for a club of United’s resources.

The reason this loss doesn’t particularly matter, professional pride aside, is because Amorim made clear after United’s dramatic comeback win against Lyon in the Europa League quarter-finals on Thursday that all their focus is now on winning that competition.

Amorim knows their only chance of qualifying for the 2025-26 Champions League is by lifting that trophy in Bilbao on May 21, and that is why he rested several key players here, only introducing Bruno Fernandes just before the hour mark.

It is obvious why United no longer need to focus on the league, but with five league games remaining, they could end up finishing 17th, the lowest-placed non-relegated side, which would be humiliating for a club of their status.

Dan Sheldon

Did United’s youngsters pass their big tests?

With Tyler Fredricson making his senior debut at centre-back and Harry Amass playing ahead of him at wing-back, United’s left side had an unfamiliar and distinctly youthful feel to it.

It was a big day in particular for 20-year-old Fredricson, a boyhood United fan from south Manchester, who got his opportunity after Amorim made a raft of changes to the team that dramatically triumphed against Lyon after extra time on Thursday.

Calm and composed in possession in the first half, he passed intelligently and, in a sign of his growing confidence, even set off on a mazy run at one point. Perhaps most impressive, though, was the way in which he relished the physical side of the game up against Jorgen Strand Larsen and Marshall Munetsi.

Tyler Fredricson impressed for United (Carl Recine/Getty Images)

For 18-year-old Amass, who came on as a substitute in midweek and has played twice in the Premier League this season, this was another encouraging afternoon.

Positive with the ball – Amass put in a couple of lovely early crosses – he also defended well when one-on-one against the experienced Nelson Semedo, a duel early in the second half that ended with him making a sliding challenge, and emerging with the ball, was typical of his desire and determination.

Harry Amass shepherds Nelson Semedo away from danger (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)

Stuart James

Hojlund labours again

It was another one of those days for Rasmus Hojlund and, unfortunately for the Danish striker, there have been far too many of them in a Manchester United shirt.

The sight of 17-year-old Chido Obi being summoned from his touchline stretches to replace him with 20 minutes of the 90 remaining was entirely predictable. Hojlund had looked what he currently is – a player desperately lacking in confidence and crying out for a goal of any description.

There were a couple of passages of play in the second half that felt symptomatic of his two-season United career so far. A lovely piece of skill out wide, close to the halfway line, saw Hojlund escape in the inside left channel, and for a moment you were lulled into thinking that this could be his moment. Instead, the €85million (£72.9m/$96.7m at current exchange rates) signing never even managed to get a shot away, his total lack of conviction inviting Toti Gomes to dispossess him.

Another chance evades Hojlund (Paul Ellis/AFP via Getty Images)

A few minutes later, Fernandes, Christian Eriksen and Alejandro Garnacho combined superbly on the left. Garnacho’s low cross skidded across the six-yard box and there was Hojlund, stretching every sinew to get his boot on the end of a cross that somehow eluded him.

The Old Trafford crowd sighed and the 22-year-old threw his head back in a mixture of frustration and despair.

Stuart James

Cunha shows why he’s a wanted man

Matheus Cunha spent part of the warm-up here dragging his hands along the Old Trafford turf and then rubbing them onto the backs of his legs.

It wasn’t entirely clear why. Was it superstition? Or, more mischievously, was the Wolves forward attempting to bond with the grass in United’s stadium before a potential summer transfer from Molineux?

The Athletic has previously detailed how United are considering making a summer move for the Brazilian, who had a £62.5million release clause inserted into the new Wolves contract he signed only in January.

Cunha came into this match having scored seven goals in 10 games for club and country and he had a couple of nice touches in the first half. There was a little pat on the back of his head from Amorim as they walked down the tunnel at half-time but he was mostly quiet in an opening 45 minutes that had little attacking zeal.

But come the crucial moment, Cunha made the difference: it was his surging run that drew a foul from Eriksen (and a booking) and gave Pablo Sarabia the perfect chance to launch an exquisite free kick into the top corner.

Amorim wants more goals from his team, and Cunha has 14 in the Premier League this season, six more than Fernandes, United’s captain and top scorer in the league. The 25-year-old has played better this season than he did here, but his ability to conjure a moment of magic only underlines why United, and many other top sides, have him on their radar.

Dan Sheldon

What did Amorim say?

Speaking after the match, Amorim said: “If you look at the game, we were the better team but in the end, it doesn’t matter because if we don’t score goals, nothing matters, in the end what counts is the result, especially in these kind of moments.

“We create a lot of chances, we had a game, we control the game, we blocked some good players from the opponent and one set piece changes the game and that’s it, it’s really frustrating to end the game like this.

“We say to the fans the truth: that we lack a lot of things in our team, that we miss chances. If we do not score goals, we are not going to win. We have a lot to do and to focus on improving the team, and step by step, and understand until the end of the league is going to be like this and we do something.”

What next for United?

Sunday, April 27: Bournemouth (Away), Premier League, 2pm UK, 9am ET

(Top photo: Carl Recine/Getty Images)

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