Aston Villa v Manchester United: Premier League – live | Premier League

67 min Fernandes wastes a decent situation – not for the first time – following nice, quick passing. He’s been very poor so far this season, having carried United through the second half of last, and they need him to find himself. He’s behind the free-kick, 25 yards out, just left of centre…

65 min De Ligt wins two important pokes, then Rogers moves by Mainoo … who responds with an important challenge.

64 min Two changes for United, Antony and Zirkzee replacing Hojlund and Rashford. I’m not certain what the former has done to earn the shout ahead of Amad; my gusss is that his ball-holding ability is what Ten Hag is after.

63 min Villa send on Duran for Bailey, then send the free-kick into the box, Watkins eventually hooking a slice well over the top.

61 min Duran has been called back and will soon be with us, then Bailey diddles Rashford on the outside via stepover. So Rashford lazily dangles a leg, trips Bailey, and is extremely lucky to avoid a second booking. If he’d not been carded before, he’d for sure have got one for that.

60 min Tielemans and Digne fake the cross twice each, then go down the line and United clear.

60 min Cash gets away from Rashford, who runs through him and is booked. Another chance for Villa to swing a free-kick into the box…

59 min “Funny how the mind plays tricks,” says Adam Webster. “I remember that 1984 Villa v Man Utd game, but I could have sworn that Didier Six got a hat-trick that day. It was so exotic seeing a foreign player playing in England.”

57 min Evans misses a challenge and Rogers finds Watkins, who lashes over the top. Villa have taken control of midfield here – and of course still have the cheat code that is Jhon Duran on the bench.

55 min Villa are coming, picking some space in the United box when Barkley slides a gentle ball down the side of the box for Cash. But his square-pass is poor, Dalot heading behind, and again the corner goes short, this time to Bailey, who finds Tielemans, and his shot, though powerfully struck, is turned behind by Onana easily enough, and this time the kick comes to nowt.

54 min Noni Madueke has made it Chelsea 1-1 Forest.

53 min Rogers gets a chance to open his legs, dashing through centrefield. But a heavy touch allows De Ligt to step in, Evans completing the job.

51 min …which Tielemans cuts back for Cash, who swipes wide. On the Villa bench, Austin McPhee, the set-piece coach looks befuddled; perhaps he’s just passed a reflective surface, because he looks like he’s just woken up after 67,043 years.

51 min Villa move from one end to the other, winning a corner of their own…

49 min From the corner, Eriksen’s looks for De Ligt, but he’s crowded out, then Garnacho pulls a shot wide of the near post.

48 min Mainno sees a shot charged down then wins a loose ball, turning and spreading to Rashford who comes across the face of the box, feints the shot then clobbers one, Martinez tipping behind.

47 min Also going on:

47 min Elsewhere, Chris Wood has put Forest 1-0 up at Chelsea.

46 min “I thought your River Island call was a good one,” says Adam Roberts.” Whenever I see this horror story of a third kit, I expect to see the Ralph Lauren polo horse rather than a cartoon too-big devil.”

46 min Off we go again. Lindelof is at right-back, which should interest Philogene. Villa should be getting him on the ball at every opportunity.

It’s De Ligt who gets the shout to replace Maguire, not Martinez. He’s not done anything to justify that, so we can only assume it’s his profile Ten Hag wants – more physical power and a bit more pace over the first few yards. Oh, and Mazraoui is also going off, presumably injured, so Victor Lindelöf comes on for his first appearance of the season.

I do, though – partially at least – agree with the point on the reffing. United players seem to have been booked for infractions that might’ve been fairly punished with a free-kick, while Villa’s have been excused similar offences.

“Sometimes I feel like I am watching a different match to everyone else, especially when watching the MBMs,” says Andy Donald. “I’m not a Utd supporter by any description but they seem much better than Villa here. There also seems to be no mention of the very cynical fouls Villa are not getting called out on. I guess my point is that very often commentators ignore what is happening in front of them when a team is on the rise outside of the context of a match happening. Case in point: a headline on another publication reads ‘United holding firm at Aston Villa’. It makes it sound like they are holding back this almost unstoppable tidal wave of dominance by Villa when it’s not comparable to what I am seeing with my own eyes.”

I think “much better” is a stretch. It’s been a fairly even half and I think the “holding firm” line is there to tell people United are defending well, which they are.

Half-time email: “Is it that surprising that Ugarte hasn’t played that much so far?” wonders David Wall. “He arrived late on the last day of the transfer window, so only a month ago. Plus he’d played no football since the Copa América, arriving late back from that to PSG and then not being involved at all with them. He’s unlikely to be match fit having had no pre-season and no season before he arrived. Hardly an ideal situation to chuck someone into a new side, let alone one that is really struggling.”

I agree, but given the state of United’s midfield, and his status as a young athlete at his physical peak, I’d expected to see him more.

Half-time entertainment from on this day in 1984:

HALF-TIME: Aston Villa 0-0 Manchester United

45+2 min Evans goes in the back of Bailey, and again Digne’s delivery is poor, picking out Big Bruno Fernandes, who heads away. Then, when the ball comes back, it misses everyone, and Maguire limps away with jiggered quad; that looks like being his afternoon done, De Ligt preparing to replace him – but they’ll take a view during the break.

45+1 min Hojlund outpaces Diego Carlos, coming form behind to steal possession. But as blind-side shove goes unpunished, to his consternation.

45 min We’ll have three added minutes.

44 min Hojlund picks up a loose ball after Torres loses it in his feet, but with Fernandes waiting for a pass in the middle, he instead opts for a scoop down the side of the box, which predictably runs behind.

44 min Garnacho gives away a free-kick down the left, and again, it’s bent directly into Onana’s gloves.

43 min “Personally, United’s kit puts me in mind of the natty number that Egypt wore at the 1974 African Cup of Nations,” writes Kári Tulinius.

42 min Mainoo beats one man then, with nowhere else to go, slides into a challenge with Carlos. He’s booked, somewhat harshly.

40 min It’s so good to see Ross Barkley back playing well. In 2013-14 he looked the nearest thing to Gazza we’d seen in a while, his strength in possession while moving through the middle of the pitch marking out an unusual talent. But he never quite developed his football brain and looked to be on the way out, so his renaissance is as surprising as it is welcome.

39 min Dalot clips into Rashford, who uses a thigh to lay off for Garnacho, backing him up. But the curling shot, though hit with venom, is too close to Martinez who fists away on the dive.

38 min Digne whips directly into Onana’s midriff.

36 min Watkins isolates Maguire out wide, saunters by on the outside and is immediately introduced to grass. Maguire is booked and Digne will now swing in a free-kick from just outside the box, right-hand side…

35 min Digne swings in a decent ball from the left but at the back post, Bailey opts to go with foot not head and can’t make decent connection.

34 min “Two of the best, in my humble opinion, kits of the season on show here today,” returns Matthew Lysaght. “Such a pity they’ll be forgotten about by this time next year. Oh for the two-season kit use of yesteryear.”

I’m not sure that ever existed. For as long as I’ve been watching football, United have had three – in the mid-80s it was red home, white away and blue third for Southampton and Sunderland. I do, though, agree that Villa’s colours are great. The below is one of my all time favourites.

33 min Fernandes heads Digne’s corner away, then Eriksen gets rid when the ball comes back and Hojlund wins free-kick release.

31 min United, growing in confidence until they shrink in confidence, knock it about nicely, Garnacho then retrieving possession inside the Villa box before being crowded out. But they come again, Diego Carlos heading Rashford’s cross clear, then Evans again averts the counter. But not for long, Tielemans’ cross blocked behind by Evans – so far the best player on the pitch – for a corner.

28 min In co-comms, Carragher notes that Rashford is narrow, explaining that United are keen to force Villa wide. But it may also be the case that they want him closer to goal than he has been – though in the meantime, here come Villa, Fernandes’ ill-advised flick finding barkley. He moves through midfield and spreads to Bailey, but when the return cut-back arrives, his first touch is heavy, and again Evans slides in to win the challenge.

26 min Villa haven’t started especially well – they’ll have dumped a load of energy, physical and emotional, on Wednesday night, which perhaps explains it. But here comes Rogers now, easily shrugging off Eriksen, so Evans hurtles in to win a useful challenge. He the limps away, holding his left knee, but should be fine.

25 min United’s kit looks like it was sold in River Island, c.1997.

23 min United counter and Fernandes wins a free-kick, hit long towards Maguire on the far side of the box. His header hits Rogers’ arm, but it was too close to the ball to yield the kind of ludicrous penalty handed over in the 2023 FA Cup final.

22 min Kobbie Mainoo is a fantastic talent, but he needs to improve – and United need to improve – at getting him on the ball. I’m not sure he’s touched it yet.

20 min Philogene wanders in off the left and, with no one closing down, waves a right foot at a wobble-ball that flies a yard or two wide of the far post.

19 min “Like other non-Utd football fans, I’m enjoying Manchester United’s current run of hopelessness and misery” says Yash Gupta. |But I can’t get my head around why they refused to hire Pochettino? Even at Chelsea Pochettino showed he can sort mess out.

From the outside it looks like Man Utd need a coach who can play exciting football which maximises talent available at their disposal and also promotes academy talent. And United generally give their managers enough time which was one accusation thrown at Poch that his project usually took time initially.

Anyway Pochettino is now off to USMNT. So let’s bring in Southgate for more fun.”

I guess they didn’t employ Pochettino because he’d (arguably) proven himself just a bit less good than the managers he’d have to catch, and we’re now a few years away from the best of him.

17 min Excellent from Dalot, who spins away from goal then slides a decent reverse-pass into the inside-left channel for Hojlund, who times his run well. But a heavy touch allows Diego Carlos to intercede, and this has the look of a classic game between a good side and a side with good players: close until it isn’t.

15 min United win a free-kick 40 yards from goal, send the big men forward … and Eriksen passes square to predictable avail.

14 min Maguire wins a decent challenge and passes into misfield, Hojlund laying off for Fernandes, who sticks one in behind for Garnacho. He looks offside but the flag stay down even when the ball goes into touch – but Villa soon win it back.