Man Utd news: Amad Diallo scores a hat-trick as Red Devils overcome Southampton
Amad Diallo scored a late hat-trick as Manchester United overcame a spirited Southampton side at Old Trafford on Thursday night.
The win continues a rich vein of form for Ruben Amorim’s charges that has included positive results from clashes with Manchester City, Liverpool, and Arsenal.
United’s next match is against Brighton on Sunday as they seek to make up for a calamitous start to the season.
Sports News Blitz writer Robert Bore offers his thoughts on the game against the Saints.
Late heroics save United’s blushes
Does anyone have a number for a sculptor in Manchester please?
Competitive rates and must be good with marble.
Get the statue built — there's no point waiting.
Take a bow Amad Diallo with your 12-minute hat-trick and uncanny ability to pull your teammates out of the shite.
Before the Ivorian decided to take the game by the scruff of the neck, the relegation narrative was alive and kicking. The headline writers were licking their lips in anticipation.
Southampton, ten points from safety at the bottom of the Premier League table, looked like pulling down some pants at Old Trafford on Thursday night.
They must be heading back to the South Coast, and possibly the Championship, scratching their heads as to how they are not dominating tomorrow's back pages.
Bright start from the visitors
Right from the off, Southampton looked good.
The best early chance fell to the impressive Kamaldeen Sulemana who forced Andre Onana into a low save. It should have been a kick up the arse for the hosts, but it wasn't as Mateus Fernandes had a chance shortly after.
United should have taken the lead after 20 minutes when Rasmus Hojlund ran at the Saints defence before cutting inside to Alejandro Garnacho, but the Argentine contrived to fire wide of the far post.
The hosts began to apply more pressure without fashioning anything clear-cut and it felt like a goal was coming, but the visitors still looked sharp on the counter.
Ivan Juric’s charges should have broken the deadlock through either Tyer Dibling or Mateus, but Onana pulled off a great double-save to keep them out.
Sulemana continued to cause all sorts of problems, at one point running directly through the United midfield and firing over, as the warnings kept coming for the Red Devils.
With some composure, the Saints could have been out of sight already.
Considering the Saints were spanked like a naughty child – in the 80s rather than nowadays, of course – by Brentford in their last Premier League outing, it was more than a little embarrassing for United.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Premier League betting tips: Kai Havertz and Liam Delap to score; Everton and Tottenham to draw in banter clash
Hosts fall behind in typical fashion
The breakthrough came when Matthijs de Ligt was forced into a late slide tackle in his own box and conceded the corner.
And lo and behold, the team who had not scored from a corner all season went ahead via a corner against the team who had conceded the most from corners.
Dibling flicked the ball on and it went in off Manuel Ugarte's shoulder as Onana did jazz hands.
Moments later, Dibling forced another save out of Onana and United were all over the shop.
The early optimism from Ugarte winning two tackles inside the first seven minutes regarding my BetBuilder had quickly been tempered and was looking more like a waste of a fiver.
Onana was forced into five saves in the first half alone.
It was a performance that was hard to fathom coming off the back of an eye-catching win at Man City in December, a hard-earned point at Liverpool, and the thrilling FA Cup success over Arsenal at the weekend.
Perhaps United were unable to dictate the game. Perhaps they were only able to play on the counter. Or perhaps they were simply crap.
READ NEXT: Six Nations 2025: Score predictions and analysis for the opening three games
Red Devils show more promise in second half
Kobbie Mainoo was sacrificed for Antony at the break, which did little to boost my mood, but the Brazilian did profit almost immediately from a first-time shot that was deflected over for a corner.
United survived a series of Southampton corners, just about, and I thought about asking the club to install an air-raid siren for every time one was conceded.
Ugarte and the ineffective Hojlund were hooked in the 53rd minute for Joshua Zirkzee and Toby Collyer, with the latter having been impressive at the Emirates the other day.
Amorim had now thrown the dice three times.
Sulemana continued to cause havoc, putting on the afterburners to leave Leny Yoro for dead but placed his shot agonisingly wide.
While Amorim shook his head, Sir Jim Ratcliffe sat stony-faced in the stands, no doubt pondering some retaliatory P45s in the Under-13s or charging £35 for an Old Trafford hot dog.
Antony then proved he was Southampton's 12th player as he somehow steered Garnacho’s delicious ball to the back post into Aaron Ramsdale's loving yet incredulous arms.
Maybe I should have paid more attention in physics class at school, but I did not even think it was possible to miss from there.
To be fair, it would have been an undeserved equaliser.
At least Zirkzee was showing some of his Serie A form, dancing around the Southampton backline for a small win for United fans.
YOU MAY BE INTERESTED IN: F1 news: Top three Formula 1 teams to watch in the 2025 season
Equaliser comes through familiar face
With 25 minutes left, United had actually edged ahead on xG, but what they really needed was some urgency and a catalyst.
They nearly got it from their skipper when Bruno Fernandes played a neat one-two with Zirkzee and tried dinking Ramsdale, but the ‘keeper stood tall and blocked with his chest.
Amorim was preparing his final fling, the recently impressive Harry Maguire and Christian Eriksen ready to come on, when it happened from nowhere.
It had to be Amad. Again.
Zirkzee found him out on the right, but his initial run at the defence was blocked. The rebound off Kyle Walker-Peters then fell kindly into his path and Amad made the most of the luck, smashing the ball past Ramsdale for his seventh goal of the season.
Somehow, it was level with seven minutes plus stoppage time remaining.
The away side looked ragged, but was there time for a winner? All of a sudden, Old Trafford had found its voice.
MORE MAN UTD NEWS: Man Utd analysis: How Manchester United can salvage their season after FA Cup triumph over Arsenal
Amad lifts the roof off Old Trafford
With the end approaching, it was all to play for.
And then, in true Britney Spears style, he did it again.
Amad ran at Walker-Peters again before laying the ball off to Eriksen who, not massively dissimilar to Eric Cantona's deft flick for Dennis Irwin to score against Spurs many moons ago, dabbed the ball over the defence and back into Amad's path as he continued his run.
The Ivorian swung a sturdy leg at it and the ball sailed past Ramsdale.
It was all a little bit emotional, but Amad wasn't done yet.
Ramsdale, under pressure from Zirkzee, played short to Taylor Harwood-Bellis whose first touch was akin to a killer whale juggling an egg.
That split second was enough for United as Diallo was there quick as a flash to make it a hat-trick at the Stretford End.
Three goals in 12 minutes really was remarkable, but United had been pants and probably should have lost the game comfortably.
For 80 minutes, United lacked fluency and shape against the league's bottom side who will in all likelihood get relegated come the end of the season.
Plenty to ponder then for Amorim after the Portuguese had said pre-match that he would learn more about his players against the Saints than at Anfield and Arsenal.
At least he learned who his new star boy is.
MORE FROM ROBERT BORE: Man Utd analysis: Ruben Amorim faces ‘massive’ task to revitalise Red Devils
