After the December departure of Jose Mourinho as Manchester United manager, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had lifted the mood spectacularly in his caretaker position. Having inherited a squad 11 points shy of a top-four position, victory here over Southampton would see the Red Devils move into the coveted UEFA Champions League qualifying positions. However, the Saints, who needed the points in their own battle against relegation, were not prepared to play the role of support act only.
Romelu Lukaku was set to undergo a personal duel all day with Southampton’s no.1 goalkeeper Angus Gunn. On the first two battles, Gunn came out on top, denying the United forward both from close-range and with a strong hand from an arrowing shot.
It was against the run-of-play that saw Southampton take the lead in the 26th minute. Charlie Austin found young full-back Yan Valery in acres of space on the left-hand side. Virtually invited to shoot, Valery did so and caught his effort spectacularly. It had too much power for David de Gea, who despite getting fingertips to it, couldn’t keep the strike out. It was Valery’s first-ever goal in senior football.
Southampton led at half-time but Solskjaer’s team talk at the break worked wonders. Marcus Rashford should have equalised but guided a header wide of the post. However, Andreas Pereira made no mistake in the 53rd minute. In a swift move, the midfielder curled a stunning effort from distance in a goal that was just as good as Valery’s earlier effort. It was the Brazilian’s first-ever Premier League goal and won him Goal of the Month honours for March courtesy of the BBC.
Six minutes later, Lukaku finally triumphed against Gunn. Pereira turned provider, finding the powerful Belgian. He used his feet magnificently to cut inside Jan Bednarek, then driving a shot into the bottom corner. This time, Gunn was powerless to do anything about it. Ralph Hasenhüttl’s side were down but definitely not out and were back on level terms with 15 minutes remaining. James Ward-Prowse produced a special direct free-kick that found the top corner which no goalkeeper was going to save.
It was Lukaku to the rescue though for the hosts. Two minutes were left when he struck the matchwinning blow. It was a first-time strike that found the same bottom corner from 25-yards out to secure a hard-fought victory. There was still time for Gunn to save a late Paul Pogba penalty but despite an impressive display from the visiting keeper, he would still end up on the losing side.
It was a 10th Premier League win in 12 matches for Solskjaer who was still yet to taste defeat in domestic action as interim boss of Manchester United. He was given the permanent job a month later but eight defeats from their last 12 fixtures in all competitions meant they finished a disappointing sixth in the final standings. Southampton secured their safety at the end of April, ultimately ending the campaign in 16th place.
