Chapter 848 – Losing Jingzhou Due to Carelessness
After finishing their league match against Southampton, Manchester United split into two groups. One main squad, led by José Mourinho, boarded the team's private jet and flew to Qatar in the Middle East to take part in the upcoming Club World Cup semi-final. The other, a rotation squad of substitutes, stayed in England under assistant coach Michael Carrick to continue domestic competitions.
This was the second consecutive year that Manchester United had to divide their forces in such a way for the Club World Cup and domestic tournaments. The team's schedule was simply too congested — it was impossible to make adjustments.
According to the fixture list, within the next five days United would have to play four matches:
February 6, 8:00 p.m. — Premier League Round 23, Manchester United vs Everton at home.February 8, 6:00 p.m. — Club World Cup semi-final at the Ahmad bin Ali Stadium in Doha, Qatar.February 9, 7:30 p.m. — FA Cup Fifth Round, Manchester United vs West Ham United at home.February 11, 6:00 p.m. — Club World Cup Final at the Education City Stadium in Doha.
United had tried to adjust the schedule, but since late November, right after the international break, the team had been playing two matches per week without rest. And this situation would likely continue until the end of the season. So, just like last year, United had no choice but to split the squad and fight on three fronts simultaneously.
Bruno Fernandes was the exception. He would first stay in England to play the league match against Everton, then immediately fly overnight to Doha to join the main squad for the Club World Cup matches, and afterward return to England for the following fixtures.
This meant he would only miss the FA Cup fifth-round match against West Ham.
...
At 8:00 p.m. on February 6, at Millennium Stadium, Manchester United prepared to host Everton in Round 23 of the Premier League.
Since Mourinho had already taken the main squad to Qatar, the team remaining in England consisted mostly of rotation and backup players.
The starting lineup:
Goalkeeper — Sergio Romero.
Back four — Diogo Dalot, Axel Tuanzebe, Victor Lindelöf, and Brandon Williams.
Midfield — Bruno Fernandes, Juan Mata, and Fred.
Front three — Mason Greenwood, Scott McTominay, and new winter signing Amad Diallo from Ivory Coast.
The 18-year-old winger had just been signed from Serie A club Atalanta for a hefty £21.3 million. His explosive performances in Serie A and the Champions League had deeply impressed Mourinho — especially during the Champions League group stage when Atalanta defeated United at the Millennium Stadium, where Diallo's performance on the flank amazed him. Mourinho immediately sent the transfer team to Italy to negotiate, and soon after the winter window opened, United signed the young star.
Everton, currently seventh in the table, had lost only once in their last five matches and were just four points away from the top four. They were desperate to win this match to keep their Champions League hopes alive. With United divided between competitions, Everton saw a real chance to snatch three points at Millennium Stadium.
However, the makeshift Manchester United side delivered a near-perfect first half.
...
Before kickoff, both captains led their teams carrying wreaths onto the pitch — today marked the 63rd anniversary of the Munich air disaster.
2nd minute: United attacked early. Everton's defenders cleared the ball several times by header, but Bruno picked it up at the edge of the box and fired — his shot deflected wide for a corner.
21st minute: Greenwood dribbled past several defenders down the right flank but his low shot lacked power and missed the target.
24th minute: Goal! On his United debut, Amad Diallo received the ball on the right, curled in a cross with his right foot, and McTominay rose to head it in. Manchester United 1–0 Everton.
45th minute: Another goal! Again from the right flank — Bruno passed to Diallo, who returned the ball to him. From the edge of the box, Bruno curled a stunning shot that looped over the keeper and into the net. Manchester United 2–0 Everton.
By halftime, the 18-year-old Ivorian had already provided two assists, winning over United fans instantly.
But after the break, everything changed.
Since Bruno would be flying to Qatar immediately after the match, and with United already two goals ahead, acting coach Carrick assumed the game was secure. At halftime, he substituted Bruno for Phil Jones and shifted the formation to a 3-4-3.
The new setup unsettled the players, and without Bruno on the pitch to control the rhythm, United lost their grip on the game. Everton seized control.
48th minute: Everton pulled one back. From a left-wing attack, Calvert-Lewin's cross was parried by the keeper, but Doucouré followed up to tap it home. 2–1.
52nd minute: Another one! Doucouré crossed from the right, James Rodríguez arrived and slotted it in. 2–2!
...
Within just four minutes, United's two wing-backs, Dalot and Williams, were completely overwhelmed in their new roles, leaving the team disorganized.
Fortunately, Carrick reacted quickly, ordering both full-backs to drop deeper and revert to a 5-4-1 defensive setup.
That stabilized things. United stopped conceding and began to regain momentum.
62nd minute: United missed a huge chance. McTominay set up Greenwood on the left, but his tight-angle shot was saved.
70th minute: United struck again! Mata crossed into the box, and McTominay soared high to head it in. 3–2 United.
United pushed hard afterward but wasted several chances to seal the win.
Then, just as everyone thought the game was over, disaster struck.
Four minutes of stoppage time were indicated. As the final seconds ticked away, Everton won a free kick in United's half. The players protested — time was already up — but the referee insisted on letting Everton take it.
The ball was delivered toward the box. Former United academy defender Michael Keane flicked it on, and Calvert-Lewin pounced to score!
3–3! Everton equalized at the death!
Right after the goal, the referee blew the full-time whistle, not even allowing United to restart. It looked as if he had been waiting for Everton's final attack.
In the end, United were held to a draw at home.
Match stats showed that Everton had only three shots on target — all three went in.
...
After the match, Bruno attended the press conference with Carrick and voiced his frustration:
"There were many disappointing things. We made too many mistakes. We can't keep conceding goals like this. We must stay more focused, we must have the same hunger for defending our goal as we do for scoring."
"In every match, we must score — but that same mentality must apply to not letting opponents score. We have to learn from this."
"This kind of situation has happened too many times already, so this result is more than just disappointing. You can talk about everything that happened, but what matters is learning from it and becoming better."
Regarding Everton's last-second equalizer, Bruno was blunt:
"That was terrible. You can't concede a goal like that when their free kick was 50 yards from our goal. We must stay focused, be ready, be stronger — we must defend our goal with everything."
Indeed, Tuanzebe's reckless foul and the team's poor marking were costly. United had enough defenders in place, but positional mistakes, a failed aerial challenge despite having numbers, and goalkeeper Romero's hesitation all led to Calvert-Lewin's equalizer.
...
For United, throwing away a 2–0 lead and conceding in stoppage time was a painful "dropped points" match. The attack was fine, but the defensive lapses were costly.
And in this chaotic Premier League season, every lost point could significantly affect the final standings. Although United still held a lead, Manchester City's recent form had been outstanding — their chase was relentless.
Since drawing 1–1 at home with West Brom on December 15, City had gone on a nine-match winning streak.
The following day, they crushed Liverpool 4–1 at Anfield, knocking the Reds out of the title race and closing the gap on United by two more points.
With one game in hand, City were now only 11 points behind. If they won their postponed fixture against Everton in two weeks, the gap would shrink to just eight.
Eight points may sound comfortable, but that's only a margin of three games. One slip-up, and City could be right back in the race.
For United, that was far from good news.
...
After the press conference, Bruno headed straight to the airport and boarded his Gulfstream G550 private jet for an overnight flight to Doha, Qatar.
For him, rest and time-zone adjustment would have to happen midair. Once he landed, there would be no downtime — preparation for the Club World Cup semi-final would begin immediately.
But for Bruno, who had the system allowing him to sleep deeply even during flights, this wasn't a problem.
United's opponents in the semi-final were the African champions, Al Ahly of Cairo, who had defeated host team Al-Duhail to advance.
Due to the schedule, United's so-called "main squad" still wasn't at full strength.
In the 77th minute of the match, United earned a corner.
Luke Shaw stood over the ball and raised his arm — the signal for delivery.
The Cairo penalty area was crowded; unable to break through in open play, United sought to capitalize on this set-piece.
Bruno was also in the box, closely marked by two defenders. Though not tall, his leaping ability made him a constant aerial threat.
Harry Kane, along with center-backs Harry Maguire and Virgil van Dijk, battled for position amid a tangle of bodies.
The referee blew his whistle. Shaw swung the ball in.
Bruno jumped at the near post along with his markers, but none of them made contact. The ball flew across the area.
Maguire barely flicked it, changing its path. The goalkeeper reacted but couldn't clear it — chaos erupted. Players scrambled, kicking and shoving to reach the ball.
Mourinho's eyes widened — then he saw the net ripple. Harry Kane sprinted away, fists pumping, roaring in celebration!
"GOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLLLL!" Gary Lineker's voice thundered. "Harry Kane! The Manchester United striker finally scores — a poacher's finish! 1–0! United lead Al Ahly!"
Mourinho punched the air in triumph.
At such a crucial moment, it was an invaluable goal.
Minutes later, the referee blew the final whistle. Thanks to Kane's goal, Manchester United edged Al Ahly 1–0, reaching the Club World Cup final for the third consecutive year.
The stadium erupted with cheers.
With United's owner Sheikh Jassim being a Qatari prince, the team was naturally treated as the home side.
Bruno raised his arms high, surrounded by jubilant teammates, as countless fans waved their arms in celebration.
(END CHAPTER)
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