PL: Wolves were deserved winners at Old Trafford
Manchester United 0 - 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers
Joao Moutinho scored the only goal Wolves picked up a deserved victory at Old Trafford. They ended Ralf Rangnick's unbeaten start as interim Manchester United manager in the process.
The visitors controlled most of the game and were well on top by the time Moutinho struck.As you can imagine, the Wolves fans celebrated with a huge roar at the final whistle.
From the United perspective, it was a crushing blow for Rangnick. His side remain seventh in the Premier League and are a staggering 22 points behind leaders Manchester City.
Reaction
The result and Manchester United's poor performance generated a lot of discussion. Luke Shaw gave an honest view of the situation from the United perspective, he said: "At times it was clear to see we didn't have many options on the ball."
🗣 "At times it was clear to see we didn't have many options on the ball."
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) January 3, 2022
Luke Shaw says Manchester United need to bring the intensity and let the fans down with their performance pic.twitter.com/6Ffw1DpDKM
Ralf Rangnick told BBC Sport: "Very disappointed, like the players. We knew it could be a complicated game because the Wolves with a back five are very flexible in midfield. In the first half we were struggling.
"We had too many easy turnovers, too many unforced errors and too many giveaways. That didn't make the job any easier for us and that is why we changed to a back three. For 35 minutes we had more control and missed the chance to score the first goal. It was clear to me the team that scored the first goal would win the game."
The one positive for United was the return of Phil Jones. The defender hadn't played since the start of 2020 so this was a remarkable recovery for the former Blackburn defender.
Sunday Times journalist Jonathan Northcroft tweeted: "What Phil Jones has been through, mentally and physically, emotionally and personally, to get on that pitch today makes him an absolute champion. All the best to him. The Jones 'jokes' are mindless - and boringly old. When his body is right, he can really play."
Wolves impress
Wolves boss Bruno Lage also gave his thoughts to BBC Sport: "In the end we want to create these kind of feelings in our fans. After 90 minutes they have that feeling.
"We won here. It was a good game for us. From the first minute we had that feeling. We came here to win the game. The first half was very good from our side. I think it’s clear, a big performance from our side. A fantastic game from our boys.
This Twitter posted perhaps summed up their mood.
We've heard he enjoys downing the Reds... 🍷 pic.twitter.com/vgGCbWlLq7
— Wolves (@Wolves) January 3, 2022
