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Full time: Manchester United 0-0 Southampton
Boooooooooooo! United are jeered off after an underwhelming draw, which extends their winless run to four games. They looked ponderous, low on confidence and lacking leadership; Southampton were determined, organised and might have nicked it on the break. Thanks for your company, goodnight!
90+2 min Yoshida makes an excellent sliding tackle to block Martial’s cross, and the resulting corner comes to nothing.
90+1 min There will be three minutes of added time. A loose ball is about to fall for Lingard six yards out when Stephens stretches to make a vital interception.
90 min Hoedt makes a superb block to deny Lingard. He was found in space by Mata, 15 yards from goal, and opened his body to sidefoot towards goal when Hoedt appeared from nowhere.
89 min United are finally putting Southampton under extended pressure, though it’s all a bit desperate.
87 min United have been poor in the second half. They certainly don’t deserve to win the game.
85 min Redmond replaces Boufal for Southampton. We’ve just seen a few replays of Pogba’s disallowed goal. On reflection, the ball might have bounced in off the post without his touch. There was also a slight touch from the keeper McCarthy before it got to Pogba. Does that mean it should have been a new phase of play and Pogba was therefore onside? I lost touch with the offside law sometime in 2004 so I’m not sure.
83 min A dismal header from Lindelof falls for McQueen, who cracks a cross shot well wide.
82 min Lemina on, Tadic off for Southampton.
81 min Pogba has a goal disallowed for offside. He stabbed a deflected shot into the net from two yards after a scramble in the box. It might have sneaked in without his touch, in which case it would have stood, though I suspect it would have rebounded off the post if Pogba had left it.
80 min Ward-Prowse is booked for kicking Lingard in the chest.
79 min Manolo Gabbiadini replaces Shane Long, who has put in his usual lung-busting shift.
78 min Here’s Peter Oh. “Unless Guardiola wins something with Wimbledon FC he won’t fully convince me either.”
Yeah. And let’s see him produce orgiastic football with Beighton Miners Welfare FC.
77 min Martial hares into the area from the left and blunders through a couple of defenders, with the ball running back to Rashford. He tries to place a shot into the far corner and it’s blocked by McQueen.
76 min After a good move involving Boufal and Long, Tadic dribbles a tame shot well wide from 18 yards. Southampton look the likelier scores, with United looking a bit lost.
74 min “’Love him or hate him, you can’t ignore him!’ is a tired old cliche, but it was, for a very long time, true of Jose Mourinho,” says Gary Naylor. “But now? Unless one is invested in Manchester United, he feels totally irrelevant, the spats as predictable as a pantomime villain’s, the football blandly effective to a point, the results trundling along in the middle lane, neither disastrous nor triumphant. He must hate it - at least, I hope so.”
I wonder what the turning point was. I have a vague theory that the experience of managing Real Madrid – the strain of trying to ruin one of the greatest teams of all time, the dressing-room politics, the boardroom politics, the media politics – took away some of his spark. He’s still a bloody good coach, and I think he’ll win the title with United if he’s given time, but he has become so sour.
71 min Boufal’s cross is headed over by Tadic, ten yards from goal. The cross was quite flat, with no pace on it, so it was a tricky header to execute. But the way this game has gone, a Southampton winner would not be a huge shock.
70 min Matic lines one up from 30 yards. Goal kick to Southampton.
68 min “I agree that sometimes, there’s a man, well, he’s the man for his time and place,” says Niall Mullen. “He fits right in there. And that’s Pep, at Manchester City. Nonetheless I don’t think it should be taken as a given that City’s players are light years ahead of United’s. For example if you asked me who had the most talent, Raheem Sterling or Tony Martial I would say Martial every time. Yet Sterling is outperforming him all season. Could be many reasons for this I guess but I’m giving Pep the credit.”
Yep, that’s a fair point. The FA should throw all the money in the world at Guardiola and try to get him involved with England in the next few years, especially as he is already working with a few of the squad. If he can’t change the culture of English football, nobody can. Might even be worth trying to use him as a consultant at the World Cup.
67 min Young’s free-kick deflects off Stephens in the wall and goes a few yards wide of the near post. United make a Horlicks of the corner.
66 min Martial makes an instant impact, winning a free-kick 25 yards from goal.
65 min The inevitable substitution has happened. Anthony Martial replaces poor Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who had a Bebe.
64 min Zlatan isn’t on the bench for United. They could use his leadership now. That’s one of the bigger problems with this team, I think; a lack of leaders. It’s in total contrast to Mourinho’s first Chelsea team.
63 min “You said if Guardiola wants to go down as the greatest manager of all time, he needs to win something with Rushden & Diamonds,” says Mike Baldwin. “He’d would be, indeed. Seeing as the mighty Diamonds folded a few years back.”
Typical Guardian ignorance of the lower leagues.
62 min Pogba sprays another crossfield pass out to Mkhitaryan, who wallops a cross out for a goalkick and is helpfully jeered by the crowd. Poor bloke; his confidence is shot.
60 min Lingard is booked for a lunge at Stephens.
60 min “Now that we’re all competing for coldest temperature, you can tell Rachel and Kevin that Saskatoon is sitting pretty at -29C, feeling like -44C,” says Kristina Holm. “That makes us colder than both Poles. Too bad this game isn’t warming the cockles of my heart.”
59 min Ashley Young may be in trouble after the game, with a video showing him plant an elbow in the stomach of Tadic off the ball. That has potential for a retrospective three-match ban, which will really please Jose Mourinho.
58 min Boufal is booked for repeat offending.
54 min “Re your exchange with Gerry Scott @32 min, do you think Spurs will be able to hang together for as long as it takes for Levy to start writing proper checks?” says Ron Stack. “I think Spurs have a plan the way City have a plan, but they haven’t spent near enough to make it happen and it seems like time is running out. Your thoughts?”
No. I would love them to win a big trophy but I don’t think it will happen. The FA Cup, maybe. I suspect they have – at most – 18 months before the team starts to break up. They’ll become a romantic ‘what if’ team, like Yugoslavia 1992, Newcastle 1996, Denmark 1986 and the rest.
53 min Southampton could win this. United look a bit short on confidence and leadership. I don’t think it’ll be long before we see Anthony Martial.
52 min “Evening Rob,” says Simon McMahon. “The darts is dead to me now that Gary Anderson is out, but a Taylor - Van Gerwen final would be, how to say ... competitive? And a great story whichever way you look at it.”
Don’t get me started on that. I’ve kept really quiet…
Gary Anderson, though. As somebody said of Alastair Cook, he makes me want to be a better person.
50 min De Gea makes another good save! Ward-Prowse curled a precise low ball into the box from the right, and Long got in front of Matic to stab a first-time shot towards goal. It flew towards De Gea, who thrust out his right foot to kick the ball over his own bar.
49 min “In comparing Guardiola & Mourinho I think the real question is what would each do with the other’s set of players,” says Niall Mullen. “My suspicion is that Mourinho would not get half the tune Pep has out of Sterling & Sane (say) while I imagine Martial, Mkhitaryan & Rashford being considerably better under Guardiola.”
What about the other 20 players? Guardiola has redefined football but he has always had elite players. Guardiola reaches greater heights; Mourinho is a superior all-weather manager. In my opinion, if Guardiola wants to go down as the greatest manager of all time, he needs to win something with Rushden & Diamonds.
48 min The impressive Boufal plays a good ball down the left to McQueen, whose first-time cross is put behind by Lindelof.
47 min “Tell Rachel that -7C sounds quite balmy at the moment,” says Kevin Smith, “as Ottawa is a lovely -18C, feels like -26. Good weather for a walk if you ask me.”
46 min United begin the second half. No substitutions on either side.
“Hi, Rob,” says Adam Griffiths. “I’ve no emotional involvement in this game (apart from hoping that Lukaku is ok, obviously) so nothing to say about it, but here’s thanking you and your fellow MBMers for all your sterling work this year and a merry new year to you all and to all the readers/emaileriners. May the football gods be kind to you all next year.”
Well isn’t that nice? Thanks Adam! And have some of that, digital ne’er-do-wells!
Half-time viewing
Half time: Manchester United 0-0 Southampton
Peep peep! That was a poor half with a few good bits. Jose Mourinho is moaning at the fourth official as they walk towards the tunnel. See you in 15 minutes for the second half.
45+5 min It’s gone a bit flat. Boufal looks lively on the break for Southampton, as do Pogba and Rashford for United. Neither side deserves to be ahead.
45+3 min “You mentioned the winter of 1989,” says Gordon Pittendrigh. “As the last chart of 1989 had Live Aid 2 at number one, Jive Bunny at number 2, Jason Donovan at number three and Andy Stewart at number four with Donald Where’s You’re Trousers, I don’t think we need to mention that period of time again.”
Yeah, but Phil Collins had just released Another Day In Paradise, so it’s swings and roundabouts.
45+1 min There will be six minutes off added time. Matic’s low drive from 20 yards is comfortably saved by McCarthy.
45 min Hoedt is booked for something or other.
44 min That’s better from Mkhitaryan, a fast cross from the left that is flicked just wide by the head of Lingard. He probably should have hit the target as well. The move started with a majestic crossfield pass from Pogba, who is starting to influence the match.
41 min Des Kelly, BT Sport’s Touchline Man, says there are no plans to take Lukaku to hospital. Whether he’ll be allowed to play at Everton on New Year’s Day, I don’t know.