Report by Dave Coleman

Well what a strange game that was. For just about the whole of the first half there was no serious effort by either team and it looked as if both had settled for qualifying for the knockout rounds and leave the group positions as they were before the match started. There was nothing to really get excited about throughout the first 45 minutes and going in 0-0 at half time was a foregone conclusion. The second half started very much the same but then AZ broke away down their left our right and really should have taken the lead but the attempted finish went straight into Romero’s hands. I dont know if thats what did it but we suddenly woke up and for just about 10 minutes destroyed AZ totally. First of all we got into their area on our left and crossed the ball right across to the other side where Young crashed the ball home. Within 5 minutes Greenwood got in and finished expertly into the corner. We very shortly got him in again when he was brought down for a penalty that Mata converted easily. Then within what seemed like seconds Greenwood did it again with a very similar finish and we were 4-0 in as quick a time as you could imagine. That really was that l think AZ were completely shellshocked and had absolutely no chance of recovery. The great thing was we were then able to take off both Martial and Maguire the only real first 11 players on the pitch and give them a break before Sunday. We most certainly got the result we wanted ensuring top spot in the group and getting what should be a slightly easier draw in the last 32 of the competition. It would be hard to criticise any of our players performances though for the most part of the match there was nothing to talk about. Theres no doubt MOTM has to be Greenwood for his 2 goals and starring role in the 10 minutes that really mattered. I do think that Pereira had a much better game and can hopefully move forward with a bit more confidence in future matches. Next game is Everton at home in Premier League on Sunday. Come on United! 🇾🇪