Premier League: Manchester United secures crucial win, Liverpool moves to top of the table

Dec 27, 2023

Manchester [UK], December 27 : Rasmus Hojlund could not have found a much more perfect time to score his first Premier League goal as his winner helped Manchester United bounce back from two down and secure a 3-2 win over Aston Villa at Old Trafford on Tuesday night.
United once again started on the slightly shabby note, especially with their defending. First-half goals from John McGinn (21st minute) and Leander Dendoncker (26th minute) put Aston in control.
McGinn's goal came from a free kick which Andre Onana could not defend, continuing his poor form. The second goal was also a result of poor defending as Clement Lenglet was able to latch onto McGinn's cross and Dendoncker was unmarked and he easily put the ball into the net.
With the first-half score of 2-0, Villa was in the lead and United was booed at home at the end of the first half.
Alejandro Garnacho finally added a goal to United tally after a poor pass from Diego Carlos found Marcus Rashford, who passed it to Garnacho, who ended United's near nine-hour goal wait across all the competitions in the 59th minute.
Garnacho brought United back in the hunt with a 71st-minute equaliser.
In the 82nd minute, Hojlund's instinctive volley found the nets and brought the roof off Old Trafford. Manchester United won the game 3-2.
Now United is at sixth place with 10 wins, a draw and eight losses, which gives them a total of 31 points. Villa is at third place with 12 wins, three draws and four losses, which gives them a total of 39 points.
In the other match, Liverpool beat Burnley by 2-0 at Turf Moor.
The Reds moved to the top of the Premier League table with this win.
Liverpool had a fine first half. Darwin Nunez ended his 600-minute on-pitch goalless streak in the sixth minute, giving Liverpool a lead.
In the first half, the Reds managed eight shots on target. Harvey Eliott's fantastic effort at goal was ruled out just after half-time as Mo Salah stood in an offside position.
As the game went on, Burnley became more intense while Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool got more sloppy. Johann Berg Gudmundsson however missed a golden chance to level the scores while delivering a header from close range.
In the 90th minute, Diogo Jota scored the match-winning goal for Liverpool, taking them to the top with 12 wins, six draws and a loss, with a total of 42 points. Burnley is at 19th with three wins, two draws and 14 losses in 19 games. They have just 11 points to their name.