Manchester United threw away a two-goal lead against Aston Villa in a 2-2 draw after a righteous start to Saturday’s Premier League match at Villa Park fell apart in a span of four minutes.
The Red Devils led after just six minutes on Emiliano Martinez’s howler helped Bruno Fernandes get on the board, and Ralf Rangnick’s men were buzzing around the Villa final third for the first half hour.
The hosts got into the game before halftime but Fernandes got a second goal in the second half and United appeared to be cruising to a complete win.
[ MORE: Three things we learned from Villa 2-2 Man Utd ]
That most certainly did not happen, as Jacob Ramsey and super-sub Philippe Coutinho each had a goal and an assist between the 77th and 81st minutes.
“It is tough to take because I think the game was under control,” said Bruno Fernandes. “The performance was better than the result, more controlled but the main point is winning games and points. We deserved more, but it’s not about deserving it is about getting points. We still have a lot to improve but it is about performance and results together.”
Rangnick was mystified at what he believed to be an inexplicable lapse.
After all, he said, this was United’s best game under his watch.
“It is very difficult to find positives after these 95 minutes,” he said. “I felt it was the best game since I came here. In the first half for 30 minutes we dominated the game. We had taken took some steps forward but have a few things to do better.
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“It feels like a defeat, to be honest. Right now it’s very disappointed but what we showed was a step forward. It’s about getting the results, it feels like two points lost and given away.”
Villa’s point moves it 13th with 23, while United inches to 32 points. That’s five points back of fourth-place West Ham.
