Man.United pegged back by Sheffield post dramatic comeback

Manchester United and Sheffield United shared the spoils after a dramatic 3-3 draw at Bramall Lane on Sunday, with the home side scoring a late equaliser after three goals from the visitors in seven minutes.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team, outplayed for 70 minutes by the promoted side, trailed 2-0 after a first-half goal from John Fleck and a second-half effort from Lys Mousset.

Chris Wilder’s team were hungrier and more incisive but from nowhere United were back in the game, with 19-year-old Brandon Williams scoring in the 72nd minute. Manchester United suddenly looked full of ideas and incisive running, with the game turned on its head.

Solskjaer threw on Mason Greenwood to replace Andreas Pereira, meaning they were now operating with an attacking quartet of Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Daniel James.

Just five minutes after Williams’ strike, Greenwood equalised, finishing from close range after Rashford’s cross.

With the home side rocking badly, United poured forward again and Rashford swept home.

But the drama was still not over, with Oliver McBurnie controlling the ball and firing past David de Gea to level at 3-3. The goal stood after a VAR check.

Meanwhile, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said on Saturday there is little hope of Manchester United being able to make significant additions to their under-performing squad in the January transfer window.

United have been linked with a long list of potential new recruits as Solskjaer seeks to improve after an inconsistent start to the season.

Names like England winger Jadon Sancho, currently with Borussia Dortmund but reportedly keen to return to English football, Leicester playmaker James Maddison and Salzburg striker Erling Braut Haaland, one of the most sought after young talents in Europe, have all been linked with United.

A possible move for Haaland appears particularly plausible, given that Solskjaer worked with the forward while at Norwegian side Molde.

But, given the constraints presented by the mid-season window, Solskjaer insists that talk of a wholesale injection of fresh blood in January is fanciful.

“It is not about ‘x’ amount of money, it is about who do we think will be good for the club in the long-term, not just three or four months,” he said.

“Not many clubs want to sell players that they would otherwise want to keep in January.

Getting players back to fitness has been one of many challenges faced by the United manager over the opening weeks of the campaign, with French World Cup winner Paul Pogba the most notable absentee.

There is still no firm date for Pogba to return form a persistent ankle problem, with the most optimistic estimates appearing to put his possible comeback in mid-December.

But United’s difficulties in the centre of midfield have been exacerbated by the loss of Scott McTominay, who injured his ankle before the international break, and veteran Nemanja Matic who has only just returned to training after nearly seven weeks out.

The problems do not appear likely to be solved in time for the start of next month which kicks off with United welcoming Tottenham, and their recently-appointed former United manager Jose Mourinho, to Old Trafford before visiting City in the season’s first Manchester derby.

However, Solskjaer has pointed to the recent improvements shown by Brazilian midfielder Fred, a disappointment last season after a £52 million ($66.74 million) move from Shakhtar Donetsk, with his manager finally believing that the 26-year-old is living up to his potential.

Agencies