Manchester United 3-1 Leicester City: Falcao & Van Persie on target - 7M sport

Manchester United 3-1 Leicester City: Falcao & Van Persie on target



Posted Sunday, February 01, 2015 by Goal.com

Manchester United 3-1 Leicester City: Falcao & Van Persie on target

Louis van Gaal & Co. banished memories of September's shock 5-3 loss to the newly promoted side with an efficient first-half display at Old Trafford.

Manchester United avenged their humiliating defeat to Leicester City earlier in the season by recording a 3-1 victory over the Premier League's basement club.

Louis van Gaal's side were beaten 5-3 at the King Power Stadium in September, but they never looked in danger of suffering a similar fate at Old Trafford on Saturday.

Robin van Persie opened the scoring with his first goal in five matches in all competitions - a well-taken 27th-minute effort following a teasing ball over the top from Daley Blind.

That strike was swiftly followed by Radamel Falcao's bundled second, before Wes Morgan sent the ball beyond his own goalkeeper just before half-time.

United failed to build on their healthy lead after the interval, and conceded a late Marcin Wasilewski header, but they comfortably staved off the kind of comeback that earned Leicester their remarkable win earlier in the campaign.

Victory lifts United above Southampton, who play Swansea on Sunday, into third, while Leicester remain rooted to the foot of the table.

United, who wore black armbands to mark the 57th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, made three changes from their goalless FA Cup draw at Cambridge United, while goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer was handed a first Premier League start for Leicester.

Despite United's best efforts to probe the Leicester defence, the veteran stopper went largely untested in the early stages, with Falcao flagged offside when he appeared to have found an opening.

Leicester scored with all five of their shots on target when the sides met in September, and their first opportunity fell to Jeffrey Schlupp, who - with United temporarily down to 10 men as Phil Jones laced up a new pair of boots - raced down the left.  He was unable to shake off the attentions of Antonio Valencia as his shot went high and wide.

United broke the deadlock in the 27th minute as the architects of one of the most memorable goals of 2014 combined again.

Blind, who provided the assist for Van Persie's spectacular diving header against Spain at the World Cup, found his Netherlands team-mate with a ball over the top before the striker expertly hooked a shot beyond Schwarzer, despite appeals for offside.

Falcao then pounced to force the ball over the line from close range after the goalkeeper had failed to hold an Angel Di Maria strike.

Having provided the assist for United's opener, Blind was again involved in United’s third as his header from a corner led to Morgan inadvertently diverting past Schwarzer a minute before the break.

Leonardo Ulloa went down in the box under the challenge of Marcos Rojo just after the hour mark, but referee Martin Atkinson waved away the visitors' optimistic claims for a penalty.

While United may not have looked as dangerous during the second period, Leicester offered little going forward and looked destined to end the match without registering a single shot on target.

However, Wasilewski nodded home his first goal for more than three years from a Marc Albrighton cross with 10 minutes to go, although that proved little more than consolation for the well-beaten visitors.



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