Mason Mount saved Manchester United from further inquest with a 2-1 come-from-behind win against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
The midfielder scored from a well-worked set-piece after being teed up by Bruno Fernandes.
The goal, Mount’s second of the season, came minutes after Joshua Zirkzee ended his year-long Premier League goal wait with a finish from an impossible angle.
With a total xG of 0.05, United completed a second-half comeback in a game that gave Ruben Amorim’s side little hope before the half-time whistle. The Portuguese coach criticized his opponent’s play in the early exchanges after the match, saying the Portuguese side “cannot play like that in the Premier League.”
Despite showing early promise with Dean Henderson denying Casemiro’s early goal with a smart stop, United were outclassed by Palace in the opening 45 minutes. Amorim watched his team score just 0.01 expected goals without set pieces.
In a play that summed up United’s disappointing run, Lenny Yolo clumsily brought down Jean-Philippe Mateta inside the area, giving away a penalty.
Jean-Philippe Mateta was forced to retake his spot-kick
Mateta, who initially sent Senne Lamence the wrong way, had to do it again after being judged by VAR to have touched the ball twice.
Palace continued to have further chances in the first half, with Matthijs de Ligt and Luke Shaw requiring major interventions to prevent further damage.
Amorim was seen pacing anxiously in the mixed zone during the half-time break, taking a moment before having the all-important talk with his players, hoping to avoid a repeat of Everton’s disappointing performance against 10 men on Monday.
All his words paid off as United ended their three-game losing streak without a win and moved into sixth place, ahead of Palace, who have been denied a place in the top four. Amorim also becomes the first United manager to win at Selhurst Park since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in 2020.
“Manchester United suffer from consistent inconsistency”
Manchester United players celebrate 2-1 win at Crystal Palace
Manchester United must find a way to overcome their Jekyll and Hyde complex. Ruben Amorim’s side fell short in the first half against Crystal Palace.
They were under the pump at Selhart Park and lacked energy, belief and ideas. But Joshua Zirkzee’s magical moment changed everything.
Throughout the season, United have started pretty well and United have always found joy.
However, they were unable to maintain their early performance. In recent performances, United have been far more effective in the second half. But their problem is that they got off to a slow start.
The difference is most noticeable in the defensive numbers. Across United’s first 11 games this season, the expected number of goals conceded in the first half was 5.71. This changed in the second half, when the number almost doubled to 11.07.
However, in United’s last two games against Palace and defeat to Everton, their expected goals in the first half was 1.26, and after the break this figure had dropped significantly to 0.26.
It is important to note that in both games, United naturally became more attacking-minded in the second period, as they were outnumbered in the first half.
But there are hints in the numbers that Amorim’s side will be a different team when they take an early lead, as they did eight times in their first 11 league games, than when they concede early goals.
Perhaps there are signs of complacency in their lead and Amorim needs to find a way to fix that while also motivating a faster start.
Amorim: We played better after HT because Zirkzee played well.
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Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim told his players they needed to be “more lively” as Crystal Palace looked tired during their 2-1 win at Selhurst Park.
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim:
“That (Joshua Zirkzee goal) was really important.
“But again, it wasn’t just the goals, it was also the goals conceded from behind. In the first half he struggled with duels, but in the second half he won some duels.”
“And because of Josh’s quality in the second half, we improved a lot. That’s important for him to understand. It’s not just a goal. We played better because Josh played better in the second half.”
“I told the players (at halftime) that we needed to be more lively, and I think you can feel that. So if you’re more lively, you can be in more places and get closer to the ball more often. I think everyone did that.”
“But we also have to understand that they were tired in the second half. And when we pick up our rhythm and they get a little tired and we concede quickly, we feel like we have control of the game and that’s it.”
Joshua Zirkzee scores his first goal in a year as he equalizes against Manchester United at Crystal Palace
Asked if he thought the team would come back, Amorim said: “Yes.
“I felt like they were really struggling to get the ball out of the box, as you could see in the last play of the game.
“And if you look at their movements, you can feel them getting tired towards the second half.
“We talked about it and again, the pace we had in the first half, the intensity we had, you can’t play like that in the Premier League.
“So we increased it and we had the feeling that if we scored one goal, things would change completely.”
Have Palace seen the end of Sarr until next year?
Ismaila Sarr sent off early in match against Manchester
Analysis by Sky Sports’ Dan Long at Selhurst Park:
“Ismaila Sarr has been by far one of Crystal Palace’s standout players since joining from Marseille in August 2024. His 66 appearances, 20 goals and 10 assists speak for themselves.
“But he may have played his last game of the year for coach Oliver Glassner’s team.
“The Senegalese forward collapsed under a challenge from Luke Shaw within the first four minutes at Selhurst Park and made gestures with his hands as if to suggest he had twisted his ankle. He continued to fight for over half an hour before being replaced by Eddie Nketiah.”
Asked about Sarr’s condition in the post-game press conference, Glasner said: “His ankle is pretty swollen, so he’s going to miss a few games, probably all the way to AFCON.”
“Senegal begin their AFCON campaign on December 23rd when they face Botswana in Tangier, Morocco. Even if Papu Thiaw’s side reach the final, Sarr will not return to domestic action until late January or early February.”
“Glassner has already made clear that Palace need to strengthen in January, with attackers at the top of his shopping list, but that now appears to be even more urgent than before.”
What was Glasner’s biggest disappointment against Manchester United?
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Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner says his club missed out on a golden opportunity to benefit from a season in Europe by failing to improve their numbers in the summer.
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner:
“What disappointed me? Almost everything.
“Two goals we conceded from set-pieces and three of the last four goals we conceded came from set-pieces. It’s really frustrating because I think we played a very good first half and I think we deserve to take the lead.”
“I don’t remember having any big chances from open play during the whole game.
“In many games we weren’t fresh enough and our energy level was down, but I think conceding these two goals made it even more difficult for us.
“It looked tough in the situation we were in, but I think we tried everything in the end.
“We had some set pieces and even better situations with free kicks. But we missed and they scored. That’s why we lost.”
