By NewsBits
Michael Olise scored a sensational 91st-minute free-kick was all it took to deny Manchester United a 10th successive win. As such, Crystal Palace became the first side to rescue points from a losing position against the Red Devils this season in a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park.
On a bitterly cold night in the capital, the first half was tight and cagey, with both goalkeepers remaining spectators for large parts of the contest. The visitors were certainly in control of proceedings and came close to an opener when Luke Shaw’s volley drifted narrowly wide. Antony and debutant Wout Weghorst also went close, but Vicente Guaita was rarely troubled as his defence held out well in front of him.
Erik ten Hag’s men have been water-tight at the back since the season’s resumption, with Jack Grealish’s header in the Manchester Derby the only goal they’d conceded prior to kick-off. That nearly changed with HT on the horizon though, when Palace’s first shot from Odsonne Edouard appeared to be looping over David De Gea, but the Spaniard produced a trademark world-class save to tip the ball onto the bar and over. Moments later, United got their noses in front as Christian Eriksen ghosted in behind on the left before finding Bruno Fernandes just inside the area, allowing the midfielder to finish emphatically into the far corner.
It was clear that Patrick Vieira’s men had a mountain to climb, with United going on to win all 10 of their PL games this term when scoring first. A major contributing factor to that record has been the ever-impressive Casemiro, who once more showed his tremendous quality to take the sting out of Palace and control the play.
With the clock ticking down, the hosts upped the ante as they pursued an equaliser. De Gea was called into action once more, making a fabulous save to deny Marc Guéhi’s powerful header. Ten Hag’s men looked to have seen off the Palace wave, before Olise produced something sublime, firing a long-range free-kick beyond De Gea via the underside of the bar – a hurdle in United’s path ahead of their clash with Arsenal on Sunday, which they’ll be forced to navigate without Casemiro, after the Brazilian picked up his fifth yellow card of the season.
