Manchester United struggled to get past League Two club Newport County, before qualifying for the Fifth Round of the 2023/2024 FA Cup with a 4-2 win.
In the FA Cup Fourth Round match which was held at Rodney Parade Stadium, Sunday (28/1/2024), Man United, who fielded their best squad, played aggressively from the early minutes.
Captain Bruno Fernandes opened Man United’s lead in the seventh minute. Fernandes built an attack from the left side after playing a 1-2 pass with Antony, before shooting from outside the penalty box and the ball nestled in the right corner of the goal.
Man United was increasingly motivated to add goals and continued to put pressure on Newport. Kobbie Maino got his name on the scoreboard in the 13th minute to put Man United ahead 2-0.
Diogo Dalot from the right side pushed into the Newport defense sending a pull pass which was met by Mainoo’s hard kick towards Nick Townsend’s goal.
Winning 2-0 made Man United more comfortable in controlling the game. Alejandro Garnacho almost scored Man United’s third goal if his shot in the 18th minute didn’t hit the post.
Newport got one chance in the 35th minute through team captain Ryan Delaney who headed the ball and Bayindir saved it.
However, Bayindir’s goal was broken in the 36th minute thanks to Bryn Morris’ volley from outside the penalty box, which hit a player before entering the Man United goal.
The score was 2-1 for Man United’s advantage to last until halftime. Entering the second half, Newport made its supporters cheer after equalizing the score at 2-2.
Will Evans escaped Raphael Varane’s control when he received Adam Lewis’ pass, before turning it into Bayindir’s goal. This goal made Newport even more enthusiastic about scoring the third goal.
Man United’s defense had difficulty dealing with the host’s Spartan game. However, Man United then scored the third goal in the 68th minute through Antony.
Antony snatched the ball from Luke Shaw’s kick which was pushed over by Nick Townsend. Antony kicked the ball from a tight angle to end his goal drought since April 2023.
Man United ensured a 4-2 victory in the 91st minute through Rasmus Hojlund. Garnacho built an attack from the middle and passed the ball to Omari Forson who tried to kick the ball.
Townsend was able to parry it but Hojlund quickly poked the ball into the net. Man United advances to the Fifth Round of the FA Cup to meet the winner of the Bristol City vs Nottingham Forest match.
