Manchester United dominate second half against struggling Wolverhampton

Manchester United have finally scored four goals in a match under Ruben Amorim, in part due to a brace from Bruno Fernandes, to win 4-1 against Wolverhampton. The win took United to sixth in the Premier League table, level on points with fifth-place Chelsea and one point behind fourth-place Crystal Palace.

How did United sail to their win against Wolves?

The first half proved to be testy for the Red Devils, with the defense looking shaky at times without the big presences of Harry Maguire and Matthijs de Ligt. Without his veteran defenders, Amorim opted to start Luke Shaw, Ayden Heaven, and Noussair Mazraoui as his back three.

Diogo Dalot and Amad Diallo played as the wing-backs, with Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro in the middle of the pitch. Ahead of those four were Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, the latter signing from Wolves in the summer. Leading United was Mason Mount, who scored the winner against Crystal Palace back on November 30.

United took the lead in the 25th minute after pressure from Casemiro forced a giveaway straight to Cunha. Despite a slip and a slightly off pass, captain Fernandes managed to find the back of the net for his first of the night.

Amorim's side kept pressing, with Cunha looking hungry to score against his former club. Even with the pressure, United failed to find a second goal. Instead, the Red Devils conceded an equalizer on the brink of half-time, with Jean-Ricner Bellegarde scoring on the volley.

The second half was a different story, with Amorim lighting a fire under his side at the break.

United's leading goalscorer, Mbeumo, scored his seventh goal in all competitions following a fast break. Cunha found Dalot with a defense-splitting pass before the wing-back slotted the ball into the path of Mbeumo for the game-winner.

The Red Devils kept pushing, with Bruno Fernandes playing a lovely ball into the box for Mount to volley home United's third, which was also the Englishman's third of the season.

A controversial handball in the box gave United a penalty, despite a similar incident not being given as a penalty earlier in the match. Fernandes calmly slotted the ball past Johnstone in goal and secured the final goal of the night.

What did Amorim say after United's dominant win?

Amorim praised Mount, who delivered another important goal for the Red Devils.

When asked whether the Englishman is playing with more consistency, the manager said, "I think also the way we play, if you compare the past that he had in Chelsea, which Chelsea is the same, then he has a great quality.

He can defend, he can attack, [and] the quality that when he touched the ball is really good. So it's not a surprise for me, but of course, we need to take care of him. Sometimes you need to protect them in training in games, but when you build, that is going to happen the same, the same thing with Luke Shaw. So he's going to build that, and it's going to be really important for our club."

Amorim also pointed to Mount being a leader for the team. He said, "He's a different type of leader. It's not like Licha [Lisandro Martinez], for example. It's a guy that leads by the example. It doesn't matter the situation.

"Mason Mount is always the same thing: training, talking, dealing with people around Carrington. That is not easy. So he's a very, very good player."

Amorim was also asked why Mount has not started every match, with the manager offering this explanation: "Sometimes, it's the tactical issue. When you play a striker, and sometimes Cunha is going to that position, or sometimes it's also we need to protect Mason Mount."

On the team as a whole, Amorim said, "I think we started really well, we scored the goal and let Wolves back in. We suffered late in the first half.

"In the second half, we showed quality, and Wolves are in a difficult moment, so it was a good game.

"We are creating more chances and scoring more goals compared to last season. They have the quality to do that, change positions, especially if you play Cunha, who moves more than a normal No. 9. I really enjoyed the way we played the second half."

What's next for Man United?

United will turn their attention to their next Premier League match, which comes against Bournemouth on the 15th of December. The Cherries sit 13th in the table, following a disappointing run of form.

Following that match, United will lose Mbeumo, Amad, and Mazraoui to the African Cup of Nations for the remainder of December and into January.

Amorim's side will face Aston Villa on December 21, before taking on Newcastle for this season's only Boxing Day fixture.

United's final match of 2025 has the Red Devils taking on Wolves again, this time in front of the Old Trafford faithful on December 30.