Manchester United kept their 100% home start to Premier League after recording the sixth win in the six matches that they've played at Old Trafford this term. The Red Devils went into the game seeking to reclaim their second position in the League standing that Chelsea had taken given that the Londoners had played earlier in the day and won their game. The win was therefore compulsive the Red Devils in ensuring that the two Manchester teams' lead continued.
Manchester United's victory seemed evident to most bookies given that the Red Devils had only lost twice in twenty-nine meetings in all competitions in the past with the Magpies.
Also, Jose Mourinho's men have shown an electrified home run where the Red Devils had scored a massive fifteen goals while conceding no goal before the contest with Newcastle United. However, the worry was that the two latest encounters featuring the two teams had ended in stalemates, so a draw was also on the cards.
What happened
In response to the 1-0 defeat that Manchester United suffered at Chelsea just before the international break, Mourinho went with a 4-2-3-1 formation with David de Gea occupying the space between the two sticks. Valencia, Smalling, Lindelof, and Young formed a shield in front of the home team goal area while Mata, Pogba, Matic, Pogba, Rashford, and Martial packed the midfield.
Lukaku was given the role of leading Manchester United's onslaught despite his bluntness in front of the goal in the recent past games.
Newcastle United manager favored the conventional 4-2-2 formation where Robert Elliot got the nod to prevent the opposition's shots from getting into the Magpies' net. Yedlin, Manquillo, Lejeune, and Clark formed the shield in front of the goal area.
Murphy, Shelvey, Hayden, and Ritchie took their places in the center of the park while Gayle and Joselu led the hunt for goals.
Against everyone's expectation, it was the visitors who took the lead in the fourteenth minute with Dwight Gayle getting into the score sheet. However, Newcastle United's lead was shortlived as Antony Martial brought the proceedings back on level twenty-three minutes later with a thunderous header from Paul Pogba's cross.
Chris Smalling rose above the visitors' defenders to head home Ashley Young's cross as Manchester United went to the break leading.
Nine minutes after the resumption of the second period, Manchester United opened a two-goal cushion with Paul Pogba getting on the score sheet. Romelu Lukaku put the proceedings beyond the visitors' reach with the Belgian scoring Manchester United's fourth with twenty minutes of regulation left.
What the win meant
The victory ensured that Jose Mourinho's men returned to the second spot that Chelsea held for just two hours. Manchester United continued to show that Old Trafford remained their fortress after winning all their six Premier League matches on the ground, but Newcastle United became the first team to score a Premier League goal on the field.
The game saw the return of Paul Pogba after being sidelined with a long-term injury.
Romelu Lukaku who had an impressive period while with his national team in the international break got a goal after a long goal-drought in Manchester United shirt. The former Chelsea player scored three goals while with Belgium national team and returned to scoring for his club after going seven games without a goal in all competitions. Lukaku scored the fourth goal for his side with the assist coming from his Belgian colleague, Marouane Fellaini. Interestingly, the two Belgian Red Devils have both had periods at Everton.
Newcastle United is currently in position eleven of the league standings, but the Magpies could drop to position twelve should Stoke City win in the Potters' pending match. Rafa Benitez men are now looking forward to welcoming the ninth-placed team, Watford in their next Premier League game at St James Park.
