Bruno Fernandes scored a last-minute winner in the 92nd minute as Manchester United held off a late Rangers comeback to secure a 2-1 victory at Old Trafford, strengthening their position in the top eight of the UEFA Europa League.
Before the match, Rangers’ manager Ruben Amorim had said his players were “nervous” on the ball, and it nearly showed early on. In the first 10 minutes, European debutant Toby Collyer lost possession, but fortunately for him, Nicolas Raskin couldn’t control the ball when played through by Hamza Igamane, allowing United goalkeeper Altay Bayındır to clear the danger. Rangers then came close again when James Tavernier’s cross found Rıdvan Yılmaz at the back post, but his volley was easily saved by Bayındır.
United grew into the game around the halfway point of the first half. Raskin crucially headed away Alejandro Garnacho’s powerful shot, and though United thought they’d scored from a corner, Matthijs De Ligt’s header was controversially ruled out for a minor foul on Robin Pröpper. Amad Diallo, who took the corner, also had a chance before the break but was denied by Rangers’ goalkeeper Jack Butland after being set up by Bruno Fernandes. Butland saved again from Lisandro Martínez’s powerful shot, leaving the score level at halftime.
United continued to build momentum in the second half. Garnacho’s well-timed pass found Fernandes, but his shot was blocked by Pröpper. However, Rangers’ defence eventually broke from a corner when Butland, attempting to punch away Christian Eriksen’s delivery, accidentally sent the ball into his own net. Rangers, who had made three substitutions, including taking off star player Václav Černý, were struggling, and United should have added to their lead. Garnacho had a shot cleared off the line by Pröpper, and Harry Maguire missed a free header from close range.
Butland made up for his earlier mistake with a brilliant reflex save to deny Manuel Ugarte’s header, while at the other end, Rangers almost equalised when Cyriel Dessers’ chip hit the post. However, Dessers made no mistake two minutes from time, taking advantage of weak defending from Maguire to control Tavernier’s long pass with a perfect touch and score into the bottom corner.
With Sir Alex Ferguson watching, United found a late winner typical of his era. Fernandes scored with a calm volley from Martínez’s cross on his 50th Europa League appearance, giving United just their second win in five home matches and putting them close to automatic qualification.
