Manchester United have secured qualification to the next round after a 2-0 win at Villarreal, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho scoring the goals that put Michael Carrick’s side on their way to the knockouts.
Carrick is in temporary charge of the side until an interim manager is put in place, with former Barcelona manager Ernesto Valverde linked with the job.
Carrick’s managerial career is off to the best possible start after the win in Spain but Sancho’s late goal will steal most of the headlines. The goal game shortly after Ronaldo had given the Reds a late lead.
Sancho has endured a tough start to life at Manchester United but will hope that his first goal, an incredible strike off the crossbar, puts him on his way to better things.
England team-mates and reported Manchester United targets Declan Rice and Jude Bellingham were certainly impressed by the strike – the pair reacted to his landmark goal on Twitter, as seen below.
Buzzing for you Sanch❤️😁
— Declan Rice (@_DeclanRice) November 23, 2021
JS😁
— Jude Bellingham (@BellinghamJude) November 23, 2021
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“Buzzing for you Sanch,” Rice wrote whilst Bellingham opted to keep it short and sweet by tweeting his initials.
SN’s verdict on Sancho’s performance…
Carrick’s first game in charge was hardly going to be a spectacle, especially considering he has been in the job for just over 48 hours. Instead, he sent the players out to play in an organised 4-4-2 shape, which would sometimes warp into a 4-5-1 with Ronaldo as the focal point.
The first half was frustrating for Sancho, with the 21-year-old often ignored by his team-mates despite being available for a pass on the far side. Carrick must have instructed his players to find Sancho after the interval and if that’s the case, they will be glad they listened to the caretaker boss.
Sancho was devastating at times and almost scored before that unstoppable strike. After being left out of the recent England squad, Sancho looks like a man with a point to prove.
