Chapter 812 – The Unbeaten Run Ends
Manchester United's away match at Burnley was the penultimate fixture of the round, with only Manchester City vs. Aston Villa remaining, which, under current circumstances, had already been postponed.
In fact, the Premier League initially intended to postpone United vs. Burnley as well, but given the heavily compressed calendar and the likelihood of further fixture congestion, United agreed to play on Monday night after discussions.
Once the match began, United seized control away from home. They registered 60% possession, created 13 shots with 7 on target. Burnley, relying on counterattacks, managed 12 attempts, but United's defense yielded no clear chances.
Despite wave after wave of United pressure, Burnley's goalkeeper Nick Pope was outstanding, producing 6 top-class saves and nearly keeping a clean sheet on his own.
In the first half, Harry Maguire's opener for United was chalked off for a foul. In the second half, Bruno, meeting a pass from Marcus Rashford, fired and scored via a deflection off a defender to finally beat Pope.
Bruno's goal bailed out the forward line, as United's front three were out of sorts, wasting multiple gilt-edged chances — even Kylian Mbappé failed to convert a one-on-one late on.
That's what a lack of full pre-season does.
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Although the club granted the players a three-week break as required, most United players — being internationals — received far less rest due to early-September national team matches. In reality, the core starters had only about ten days off.
Having just finished over two months of high-intensity football before the new season, they were fatigued, and with insufficient rest and no proper pre-season, a dip in form was inevitable.
Thankfully, Bruno delivered. His late goal sealed the win and secured the three points.
Aside from the postponed City–Villa match, all other nine fixtures produced winners. Even with victory, United sat only seventh in the table, unlike previous seasons when they started on top from the outset.
Arsenal and Leicester City both won 3–0 and occupied the top two spots.
Chelsea and Liverpool also won, while among the "Big Six" only Tottenham Hotspur stumbled, losing a shock 0–1 at home to fellow traditional power Everton.
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Due to the pandemic, the season kicked off in mid-September, whereas under normal conditions three or four rounds would already have been played.
With the Euros next summer, the Premier League had to conclude by May, meaning 38 rounds needed to be fit into roughly eight months — about 4 to 5 league matches per month.
On top of that, there were League Cup and FA Cup fixtures; European clubs had continental commitments; United would also play the UEFA Super Cup and the Club World Cup.
Based on recent years, United typically play 60+ matches per season, averaging around 8 per month — effectively two matches per week throughout this campaign.
Sure enough, right from the start, United hit that rhythm.
With the League Cup third round midweek and the UEFA Super Cup on Thursday night, United's schedule was immediately stretched.
After coordination, United's second league match was brought forward to Friday night, September 18, local time.
Being United's first home match of the season, it carried extra weight, and José Mourinho started most of his strongest XI.
With the pandemic still unabated, the match was held behind closed doors.
United began on the front foot, but many players were clearly off form.
In the 7th minute, Crystal Palace attacked down the left, Jeffrey Schlupp drilled a cross through the six-yard box, and Andros Townsend arrived at the back post to steer in from a tight angle under pressure from Luke Shaw.
Manchester United 0–1 Crystal Palace.
United pressed to equalize but nearly conceded again. In the 14th minute, Victor Lindelöf under-hit a back pass, and David de Gea had to rush out to clear under intense pressure from Wilfried Zaha, narrowly avoiding disaster.
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After 20 minutes, United finally stabilized.
In the 20th, Bruno feinted a shot at the top of the box and unleashed a rocket, but Vicente Guaita parried smartly.
In the 22nd, Rashford cut into the box from the left and curled toward the far post, shaving the outside of the upright.
United's pressure mounted, hemming Palace in.
In the 39th, Bruno was felled from behind inside the area, but after consulting VAR, the referee did not award a penalty.
United were incensed — replays showed contact on Bruno's ankle — but VAR stayed silent.
Mourinho, fuming on the touchline, let fly and earned a stern verbal warning.
Halftime: United trailed 0–1 at home.
United threw everything forward after the break, but the front line was clearly off rhythm. Their attacks lacked bite, and Palace repeatedly threatened on the break, sending shivers through the United back line.
In the 70th minute, disaster struck. During a Palace counter, Jordan Ayew's shot inside the box struck Lindelöf's arm. After VAR review, a penalty was given.
Ayew's initial effort to the bottom-left was saved by De Gea, but VAR ruled De Gea had stepped off his line early, ordering a retake.
Mourinho exploded, earning a yellow card for his protests.
On the second attempt, Zaha thumped the ball toward the top-left corner — De Gea guessed right but couldn't reach it.
Manchester United 0–2 Crystal Palace.
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Seeing the danger, Mourinho rang the changes, replacing all three starting forwards: Harry Kane, Rashford, and Mbappé made way for Riyad Mahrez, Mason Greenwood, and Scott McTominay.
With the triple change, United finally posed more threat.
In the 80th minute, João Cancelo whipped in a diagonal cross from the right. Palace's back line faltered, and Bruno pounced amid the chaos, guiding a finish into the far corner.
Back-to-back league goals for Bruno to start the season. Manchester United 1–2 Crystal Palace.
It was Bruno's 163rd Premier League goal, tying Liverpool legend Robbie Fowler and moving him up to seventh on the all-time Premier League scoring list.
Just ahead stood Arsenal legend Thierry Henry at 175 — the league's greatest foreign player at his peak and sixth on the all-time list.
The top five: Chelsea icon Frank Lampard with 177, Manchester City's Sergio Agüero with 180, United great Andy Cole with 187, United legend Wayne Rooney with 208, and record-holder Alan Shearer with 260.
Of the six ahead of Bruno, only Agüero was still active; the other five had retired, meaning their tallies were fixed.
Even Agüero, late in his career and hampered by injuries — just 16 league goals last season and still sidelined — was no longer guaranteed to add significantly.
At Bruno's pace — nearly 40 per season — he could surpass Andy Cole's 187 by season's end and enter the top three.
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Bruno's strike cut the deficit to one, and with stoppage time still to come, about 15 minutes remained — hope for an equalizer, even a comeback, flickered.
United pushed up across the board to level quickly.
But the second goal never arrived. Instead, another defensive error gifted Palace their third.
In the 85th minute, a Palace cross from the left arrived; Lindelöf's attempted interception teed it up for Zaha, who spun into the box and rifled a low drive into the bottom-left corner.
Manchester United 1–3 Crystal Palace.
The final whistle confirmed a shock defeat: United lost their first home match of the season, 1–3, to Crystal Palace.
The result also ended José Mourinho's home unbeaten streak.
Since taking charge in summer 2016, United had not lost at home in any competition for four full seasons — an astonishing run of 114 matches.
But in the first home game of Mourinho's fifth season, that record came to an abrupt end.
(END CHAPTER)
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