Europa League: Fenerbahçe 1 Manchester United 1
It just had to be about him. Almost six years after being sacked by Manchester United, José Mourinho was shown a red card against his former employers for protesting when he thought his Fenerbahce side should have been awarded a penalty. But he still saw them rescue a point thanks an equaliser from Youssef En-Nesyri after they had fallen behind to Christian Eriksen’s opener.
The result – a third straight draw in this competition – leaves Erik ten Hag’s side sandwiched between Viktoria Pilzen and Elfsborg in the playoff positions of the Europa League on a night when the Dutchman had strangely decided to play Noussair Mazraoui in an unusual attacking role. The United manager will point to a vastly improved performance from a team who had conceded 17 goals in their last five away matches in Europe, although it could have been worse had Mourinho’s pleas not been ignored. Having lost 3-0 here under Sir Alex Ferguson back in 2004, at least United emerged relatively unscathed this time – unlike their old employee.
Ten Hag has described this competition as “a big target for us” this season but he sprang a surprise with his starting line-up by opting for Mazraoui to replace the suspended captain Bruno Fernandes as No 10. The Moroccan – who occasionally played in that role under the Dutchman at Ajax – was one of four changes from United’s victory over Brentford at the weekend, with Victor Lindelöf, Manuel Ugarte and Joshua Zirkzee also brought in.
That meant that Rasmus Højlund had to settle for a place on the bench despite scoring the winner against Brentford, with Ten Hag admitting that the Denmark striker has “to build his fitness” after returning from injury.
It wasn’t just in the away dugout that there were familiar faces, with ex-United midfielders Fred and Sofyan Amrabat among several former Premier League players in the Fenerbahce team. This city has rarely been kind to the visitors over the years, dating back to the infamous “Welcome to Hell” game against Galatasaray in 1993.
Some United fans had sustained minor injuries on Wednesday night when they were targeted by some of Fenerbahce’s ultras and it was an intimidating atmosphere at a venue where they have only won once before – back in October 1996 when David Beckham and Eric Cantona both scored in a 2-0 win.
United had clearly been instructed to try to quieten the home crowd but could have fallen behind early on when former Queens Park Rangers full-back Bright Osayi-Samuel opted to shoot from a tight angle rather than pass. André Onana then had to be alert to push away a cross from Sebastian Szymanski as the hosts started to build up a head of steam with Mourinho prowling his technical area.
But his mood only soured when United went ahead through Eriksen’s smart finish following a quick break involving Alejandro Garnacho, Mazraoui and Zirkzee. The home fans and their manager felt that there had been two fouls in the build-up but referee Clément Turpin thought otherwise.
Marcus Rashford was inches away from doubling United’s lead after wriggling into the area but it required an unbelievable block from Ugarte to deny Dusan Tadic after Onana fumbled a cross straight to him and left the open goal gaping. The Fenerbahce fans couldn’t believe their luck when Onana pulled off two brilliant saves – the first reminiscent of Gordon Banks against Brazil – to deny En-Nesyri with headers from close range as their side finished the half positively.
Mourinho’s reaction to the double save saw the Portuguese rub his eyes in disbelief and he took a moment to congratulate the Cameroon goalkeeper in the tunnel as he went out for the second half. But Onana could do nothing about En-Nesyri’s equaliser after Allan Saint-Maximin found space on the left flank and delivered a pinpoint cross to the Moroccan’s forehead.
Ten Hag responded by abandoning his Mazraoui experiment and throwing on Højlund and Casemiro but the game’s moment of controversy arrived soon after.
Osayi-Samuel went down under a heavy challenge from Ugarte but Turpin waved away the protests. Mourinho looked shocked when he was shown a red card for protesting and it took an age for him to leave the pitch before taking his place in the stands. Rashford was then guilty of an embarrassing airshot after being set up by Diogo Dalot’s strong run when it looked certain he would restore United’s lead.
They looked much more dangerous with the more orthodox line-up that finished the game but couldn’t create much despite the best attempts of Garnacho.
An injury to Antony that forced the substitute to be taken off on a stretcher with his hands over his face will concern Ten Hag given that he was without 10 senior players on a night that Mourinho once more showed his true colours. – Guardian
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