Manchester United 4-4 Aston Villa: Fernandes 16 pen, Tielemans 44, Zirkzee 90+2, Dorgu 90+6; Alysson 1, Jackson 4, McGinn 48 pen, Goretzka 53
Somehow, it feels like this is only a stay of execution for Michael Carrick, with Manchester United trapped in the relegation zone and showing little indication they are capable of staying up this season.
An extraordinary late comeback against Aston Villa may bring some feeling of thrill, perhaps even hope in some quarters, but United are now also the team with the least wins in the Premier League this season: only one. Even Crystal Palace and Sunderland, currently below them in 19th and 20th place, have two wins each.
Before kick-off, United’s supporters continued their protests against the club’s ownership, with calls for the Glazers and Sir Jim Ratcliffe to sell up. On the pitch, things were as dreary as ever as Villa fired twice inside the opening four minutes to leave United reeling and fans cursing.
Alysson opened the scoring after his shot went through Senne Lammens’ legs. The goalkeeper was at fault again moments later when he failed to deal with another effort from the Brazilian. His attempted save fell into the path of Nicolas Jackson, who made no mistake from close range.
United looked in serious trouble, but Matheus Cunha gave them a route back into the match. Boubacar Kamara brought down the Brazilian inside the penalty area, and referee Chris Kavanagh awarded a spot-kick. Bruno Fernandes stepped up and sent Zion Suzuki the wrong way to reduce the deficit.
At least United had some confidence after that began to put Villa under pressure. Cunha forced Suzuki into a fine save, and Fernandes continued to create problems from wide areas. Villa struggled to deal with the pace of United’s attacks as the hosts pushed for an equaliser.
Their efforts paid off shortly before half-time when Noussair Mazraoui delivered a cross into the area, and Youri Tielemans finished past Suzuki to bring United level.
The home side had recovered from a disastrous opening, but their defensive problems returned soon after the restart. A hapless Diogo Dalot brought down Alysson inside the box, and Villa were awarded a penalty. John McGinn converted to restore the visitors’ lead.
Right place, right time 🤌 https://t.co/V348Ct9SeQ
— Aston Villa (@AstonVilla) November 8, 2026
United were left chasing the game again, and their situation worsened when Leny Yoro headed McGinn’s free-kick towards his own goal. Lammens pushed the ball onto the crossbar, but Leon Goretzka reacted to force it over the line.
Carrick responded with a triple substitution that included Patrick Dorgu, Mason Mount and Shea Lacey. United continued to push forward, but Villa appeared to have done enough to secure the victory.
In the closing stages, however, Joshua Zirkzee pulled one back and United suddenly had a chance to rescue an unlikely point. Then Dorgu followed with a 96th minute header from Fernandes’ corner, and at least United could avoid insult to their injury with defeat.
