Man United vs middlesbrough

No 37' Leadbitter finds Ramirez on the edge of the box, with the Uruguayan immediately flicking a pass around the corner to the onrushing De Roon. The Belgian cuts a ball back square from the left, but Negredo is unable to gamble on it and Jones does just enough to usher the cross clear.
37' Leadbitter finds Ramirez on the edge of the box, with the Uruguayan immediately flicking a pass around the corner to the onrushing De Roon. The Belgian cuts a ball back square from the left, but Negredo is unable to gamble on it and Jones does just enough to usher the cross clear.
35' Smalling is picked out by a back-post corner delivery, but the former Fulham defender can only rise to nod a firm header some way wide of the target. With only about 10 minutes left in this first half, Man United are cruising to three points as it stands
33' Boro earn themselves their first yellow card of the afternoon, with Clayton penalised for a foul in the midfield third.
32' Mourinho's men deserve this lead, but they should truly be three or four to the good by now. The hosts' marking was very poor there, but the away fans don't mind. Barragan feeds a low pass into Negredo, but the latter can't spin and shoot. Moments later, Fabio swings in a cross, but Negredo can only glance a header back across goal and wide of the target.
30'

Ashley Young

30' Young checks back onto his right foot from the left-hand side and dips an inviting ball over Fabio and to the back post.
30' GOOOOOOOOAL! FELLAINI MAKES IT 1-0! The Belgium international is picked out by a great cross from the left-hand side and pulls off Fabio well. He nods a firm header into the back of the net and Agnew will be wondering how much more poor defending Boro can offer in this first half.
29' Bailly invites Valencia to the right byline, but a drilled cross skips through the Boro six-yard box and to safety. Man United could go on to rue missed chances if they can't take the lead before the break. Mourinho's men should be out of sight already, with the hosts leaking chances
28' Man United link up beautifully in midfield, with Mata opening play out to Valencia brilliantly on the right-hand side. The former Wigan wide man drills a low cross into a dangerous area, but nobody is on hand to gamble and get deep into the opposition box. Boro go down the other end, but Bailly manages to outmuscle Ramirez just when the Uruguay international was trying to work a shooting angle.
26' Leadbitter bends in a cross from the deep on the right-hand side, but Fellaini rises well to head half-clear. Downing picks up the rebound and attempts to find De Roon lurking at the back post, but the English winger's delivery sails straight behind for a goal-kick. Boro haven't shown any cutting edge yet.
25' Jones is penalised for clash with Negredo, with the England international blocking the ex-Valencia striker off blatantly. That's worth a booking, in the referee's eyes.
25'

Phil Jones

25' Jones is penalised for clash with Negredo, with the England international blocking the ex-Valencia striker off blatantly. That's worth a booking, in the referee's eyes.
24' DOUBLE SAVE FROM VALDES! Firstly, the ex-Barcelona makes a brilliant stop to deny Rashford from close range, after a great cross from the left by Mata. He sticks out a foot to make an initial save, before scampering to cover his post to parry a second quick-fire effort. Rashford could have had two goals already this afternoon.
22' Lingard wins yet another corner for the away side, with Rashford's pace causing real problems when he is able to escape into the left channel. This time, the set-piece delivery is a little more inviting, but Negredo lashes clear at the near post. Man United are managing to show a bit of a threat on the counter, after a slow start.
20' De Roon tries to play Fabio in on the overlap, but Smalling covers across well to defuse the situation. Negredo hasn't been getting much service, with Man United keen to slow the contest down due to how Boro have started. Rashford drives to the left byline and cuts a pass back into the path of Lingard, but Barragan makes a good interception that concedes a corner - but Fellaini heads it wide.
18' Boro are continuing to dominate, with Leadbitter providing quite a bit of energy in the middle of the park so far. Mata opens plays the ball out to Lingard, who jinks in from the left wing and sees a shot charged down easily. Clear-cut chances have been rather hard to come by in this congested battle.
pass and whip in a cross. Rashford can't get near it, however, as Man United are struggling to get options up in support of their attacks when one of their wide players makes a quick burst upfield.

14' Boro's first corner of the match sails harmlessly over the danger zone, with Ramirez's delivery being a real waste after his great work to win it initially. The visitors are struggling to get out of their own half, with Rashford rather isolated up top at present. Mourinho will want the likes of Carrick and Fellaini to try and grab this game by the scruff of the neck.

12' Fabio, Ramirez and De Roon play neat triangles down the left-hand side, but a final ball from the Boro left-back slides straight behind for a goal-kick. The hosts are combining well and look bright in midfield. They are dominating the ball early on, with Ramirez the first man to test De Gea. The ex-Hull forward forces his opponent to palm a powerful shot behind for a corner.

10' Leadbitter curls a cross in from deep on the left-hand side, but Jones heads half-clear. The Boro captain picks up the loose ball and has a go from long range, but his effort sails harmlessly over the crossbar. Agnew will be pleased with his players' reaction in these opening stages.

9' De Roon tries to play a searching ball into the right channel for Negredo to chase, but the two aren't on the same wavelength at all. Boro are looking to be as positive as they can when shifting possession in midfield. It isn't quite clicking yet, but there is some confidence about their play.

7' Lingard manages to slot Rashford in behind, with the young Englishman bursting into the penalty area with an injection of space. Victor Valdes is exposed, but the experienced Spanish goalkeeper sprawls low to his left to make a brilliant one-on-one save! That really should have been 1-0 to the away side.

6' Man United have been quite subdued so far, with Mourinho's men happy to rush ease their way into this contest slowly. Boro have had a good amount of possession, with it clear that Agnew hasn't made any alterations to the hosts' usual style of play. They'll keep moving the ball around to probe for gaps.

4' Ramirez outmuscles Bailly and drives down the left-hand side, but a cross from the Uruguayan is massively overhit and Negredo does well to even keep the ball in play on the far side. Downing whips a delivery in from that flank, with De Roon forcing Smalling to concede a corner.

3' A couple of long balls come to nothing in the early exchanges, with Boro keen to clear their lines and ensure that no quick mistakes are made. Given the tiny portion of goals that they've scored this season, they can't afford to go a goal down against a Man United line-up which can revert to a back five if needed.

1' We are underway in the first half at the Riverside! Boro will be hoping to stop the rot after Karanka's decision to leave the club, but starting to gather the required momentum to head towards Premier League survival will be tough against today's visitors
Fosu-Mensah, Darmian.

Man United starting line-up (3-4-3): De Gea; Jones, Smalling, Bailly; Valencia, Fellaini, Carrick, Young; Mata, Rashford, Lingard.

Boro substitutes: Guzan, Stuani, Fry, Guedioura, Gestede, Forshaw, Adama Traore.

Boro starting line-up (4-3-3): Victor Valdes; Barragan, Bernardo, Gibson, Fabio; Leadbitter, Clayton, De Roon; Ramirez, Negredo, Downing.

TEAM NEWS: Jose Mourinho opts for a back three for his Man United side, with the visitors rotating after playing midweek. Phil Jones, Eric Bailly and Chris Smalling are the central defenders, with Antonio Valencia and Ashley Young offering width. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ander Herrera are out suspended, with Paul Pogba injured. Marouane Fellaini starts in central midfield, with Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata looking to support Marcus Rashford up front. Anthony Martial is fit enough for the bench.

TEAM NEWS: Bernardo starts at centre-back for Boro, with Fabio continuing in the absence of George Friend at left-back against his former club. Captain Grant Leadbitter is deployed in midfield ahead of Adam Forshaw, with Stewart Downing and Gaston Ramirez flanking Alvaro Negredo up top. Cristhian Stuani, Forshaw and Adama Traore are likely to be the go-to options on the bench to liven things up.

Boro have scored just one goal in their last five Premier League outings, with their lack of firepower causing them huge issues. If the home side want to clamber out of the relegation zone with the two games in hand that they have over 17th-placed Swansea before a ball is kicked today, they'll need back-to-back wins to edge to safety. Things are not looking good at the Riverside.

Hello and welcome to Middlesbrough's first Premier League home game without Aitor Karanka, following the Spaniard's sudden departure earlier in the week. Steve Agnew takes the reins temporarily for the hosts, and he's got quite a test on his hands. Manchester United arrive off the back of a cup defeat against Chelsea and a narrow Europa League victory over Rostov, with bouncing back domestically at the first possible opportunity very much on their agenda.Jose Mourinho turned away, fists pumped the air, arms raised in a defiant, provocative celebration. He roared and stormed down the tunnel, where a scuffle between both sets of players would soon erupt. This may have been a routine win for Manchester United, but it was a personal triumph for their manager.

Mourinho had just beaten the club that had dismissed one of his best friends, Aitor Karanka, a few days earlier. His emotions bubbled on the surface throughout and even at the end, during the clashes in the tunnel with the home team, the fire inside still raged as he warned his hosts they will never be able to erase Karanka’s name or his achievements on Teesside.

“People cannot delete the good things we do in clubs,” Mourinho said. “Justice for Karanka is the work he did here. I was sacked by Chelsea. People, now, they don’t like me, but nobody there can delete what we did.

"Aitor, he took them to the play-off final and could have left the club but decided to stay. He could have left the club - and I know what I’m saying - he could have left for better.

“He stayed for the fans, for the owner and for the players. He had a good opportunity to go to a bigger club. I repeat, I know what I’m saying. In the end, he loses his job…”Maybe it was the fact he felt his former assistant had been betrayed by Boro’s players or perhaps it was merely because this was an important away win at the end of gruelling run of games before the international break, but the Portuguese was in combative mood.

There was no handshake after the game on the touchline for Boro’s new head coach, Steve Agnew, and there was little warmth from Mourinho towards the Middlesbrough players, he felt, conspired to get him removed from the dugout.

In the tunnel, after an earlier clash on the pitch between Eric Bailly and Rudy Gestede, there was an argument, pushing, shoving and lots of chests puffed out. Security guards fought to keep the players apart. Out of sight, on the fringes, but at the centre of it all was Mourinho. His eyes will have twinkled. Where there could have been lethargy, he had ensured there was enough fight for United to maintain their pursuit of a top-four finish.

After all, the Portuguese was worried his players would lose on Teesside, that they would be too exhausted to cope with a team fighting relegation.  But there no sign of fatigue, no hint of tiredness, no suggestion his players are suffering from a gruelling schedule as they crushed Middlesbrough like a tank rolling over a bicycle.

According to Mourinho, United are vulnerable, weakened by the unfair demands placed on them. His players are being cruelly overworked, unnecessarily flogged by television companies for the enjoyment of armchair audiences. It is a tale of woe few outside of Old Trafford sympathise with.

Mourinho was able to make seven changes to the team that beat Rostov on Thursday night and still won easily. That is why you have a squad and it why United have one of the largest wage bills in Europe. This win moved United up fifth in the table for the first time since September and they have not lost in the league since the end of October.

Mourinho’s men are flying and this victory over Middlesbrough was a breeze. Once they had taken the lead though Marouane Fellani after half an hour, it was comfortable.