Bruno Fernandes successfully salvaged yet another challenging week for Manchester United by securing a decisive victory in stoppage time.

Prior to Fernandes’ late goal over Bernd Leno, Erik ten Hag’s team were poised to go with gratitude for Andre Onana’s great performance in the second half. Another instance of a late goal resulting in victory serves as another evidence of the resilience and determination exhibited by the United team.

However, during a duration of 90 minutes, the expected level of quality and determination was noticeably absent in a performance that was equally as poor as the previous setback to City in the derby and the humiliating loss to Newcastle in the Carabao Cup.

Fulham’s regret was attributed to their defensive lapses, which afforded Fernandes an opportunity to score, as well as the exceptional saves executed by Onana.

In addition to their objective, Manchester United exhibited a considerable amount of disorientation and bewilderment throughout the match, mirroring the condition of their player, Harry Maguire, who sustained a severe blow to the head within the initial minute of play and subsequently had to be withdrawn from the field by the referee for a subsequent medical assessment. Prior to that, Maguire assumed responsibility for the disallowance of Scott McTominay’s early “goal”.

McTominay successfully directed the ball into the net following a cross from Alejandro Garnacho. However, referee John Brooks, in conjunction with VAR official Jarred Gillett, deliberated for a duration beyond three minutes before reaching a consensus. 

Maguire, although positioned in an offside stance, made a movement towards the ball without making contact with it, subsequent to Christian Eriksen’s free-kick. This action, which is now deemed sufficient to dampen certain levels of excitement, has the capacity to diminish the overall enjoyment of the game.

The singular topic of discussion during the first half was the sole noteworthy aspect. The team known as United maintained a majority possession of the ball, although frequently resorted to employing long passes as a strategic approach. Fulham exhibited contentment in adopting a defensive stance and employing a counterattacking strategy, wherein Willian emerged as their most potent offensive asset.

However, with the exception of a single blocked shot by the Brazilian player and his nearly successful cross to Harry Wilson at the rear post, the host team did not pose a significant danger.

Following McTominay’s controversial “goal”, Manchester United failed to register another shot on target for a duration of 25 minutes, until Fernandes’ very weak attempt was effortlessly stopped by Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

Alex Iwobi embarked on a charging run spanning over half the length of the field, he regrettably failed to direct his subsequent shot towards the intended aim. The aforementioned statement encapsulated a somewhat unremarkable duration of 45 minutes of football.

Following the halftime interval, the United team displayed a heightened level of determination, resulting in Antony successfully challenging Leno on two occasions.

However, following that, Fulham made numerous attempts to score, which were ultimately thwarted by Onana.

Initially, the goalkeeper representing the United team altered their trajectory while in mid-air in order to successfully prevent Wilson’s powerful attempt from entering the goal.

Subsequently, he assumed an upright position in order to repel Joao Palhinha’s forceful strike from close range, followed by Diogo Dalot promptly clearing the ball off the goal line.

The only offensive effort that United managed to produce in reply was a somewhat weak shot executed by substitute Facundo Pellistri.

During the last moments, Ten Hag made substitutions, introducing Anthony Martial and Mason Mount into the match.Fernandes ultimately challenged Leno with a skillfully executed dipping free kick, leading up to a pivotal point in the match.

Fulham squandered opportunities to effectively eliminate the threat, leading to the eventual execution of a shot by the captain of Manchester United, resulting in Leno’s assistance in guiding the ball into the net.