A torturous watch that left everyone disappointed

The stage was set, opening game of the season in a packed Old Trafford under the lights on a Monday night, against a team which sacked their manager just 4 days ago even before a single ball had been kicked. 75,000 fans egging the Home team on. One would have to be a real cynic to not predict an easy 3-0 win for United. After all the pre season was good and for a change United had done their business early in the transfer window, new players had been brought in to fill gaps in key areas and excitement around this new season had already reached unsalable heights. This team under Ten Hag was built different, as it showed us for the majority of last season so there was absolutely no chance of any jeopardy on this opening night. Surely not, right ?

There was a real buzz at Kick off, after all this was the moment we all had been so eagerly waiting for, the start of this new season with new hope and expectations. However as the minutes on the clock ticked by the excitement soon wore off and gave way to frustration. Simple passes were getting misplaced, the midfield was being overrun, the play in the final third was more disjointed than a broken china cup. The football on view was scarcely believable and there were visible groans from the Old Trafford faithful. I found myself constantly shouting at the telly with my wife getting annoyed at my actions every passing minute. Then came the Wolves counter attacks with Cunha and Matheus Nunes running towards the United goal with what seemed like the freedom of Old Trafford. As the Wolves attempts on goal kept creeping up with shots flying left & right, I was getting genuinely nervous now. These pangs of anxiety were surely not in the menu tonight. Are we seriously going to lose to this Wolves team at Old Trafford ? Could the season get off to any worse start ? Are all the hopes and expectations from this season misplaced ? Was last season just another false dawn ? These questions and more came flooding in and before one could even make sense of what was going on, the most eagerly awaited evening was quickly turning into an ordeal. Then came the moment of relief, first bit of quality from United and we were suddenly ahead as Varane finished off a Wan Bissaka cross which stemmed from a sumptuous Bruno Fernandes chip pass. An unlikely scorer but who cared as Old Trafford erupted in a rapturous applause. Everyone expected United to take a grip of the game now, to score that crucial second goal and finish Wolves off but sadly that never came. What came was more nervousness as Wolves kept attacking the United goal. 1-0 leads are the most nerve wrecking things in football, more so in the Premier League. When the referee indicated seven minutes of added time I was almost resigned to the thought that United will somehow let this narrow lead slip away. To their absolute discredit they almost did as Onana came forward to claim a high cross and clattered the Wolves forward missing the ball completely in the process. A VAR check for a potential penalty ensued, as all United fans with their hearts in mouth feared the absolute worst. Call me shameless but I celebrated the no penalty decision as loudly as the goal itself. The clock ticked away and I just prayed for the match to get over. I couldn't take it anymore, a feeling I am sure, reciprocated by United fans all over the world. As the referee blew the final whistle there was a huge sense of relief as United came out winners in a match they really deserved nothing from.

Spare some time for the thoughts of the Wolves fans though, they came to Old Trafford fearing an absolute spanking but would have returned to the Black Country so very disappointed, thinking how have they not won this game. Their team was so visibly better on the night, if their forwards had taken even half the chances their team created they could've handed Man Utd an embarrassing defeat on the opening day of the season. What a solid reply that would've been to everyone who has already put them as the favourites to go down. Football is very cruel in this way. Simply playing well is not enough, you have to score goals to win football matches and this Wolves team did everything tonight except scoring a goal. They gameplay merited for a second win at Old Trafford since 1980 and everyone associated with Wolves will be well distraught that it was not to be.

For the neutrals aka ABU's for whom every United loss is a matter of great joy, this was like the United of Old, shit housing their way to a win in a match they hardly deserved anything from. The no penalty decision at the end, a new evidence to their theory of United getting away with murder at Old Trafford. The disappointment writ large on their faces as the referee blew his final whistle confirming United started their season with a win.

So the opening game is done and dusted, the only positive out of it 3 points at the end. United's season is up and running and hopefully this gives the team the necessary injection of confidence required for tougher battles down the road. I am quietly confident that upcoming matches won't be such nervy affairs as United will surely get their act together. I have too much trust in Ten Hag and his principals of perfection for him to allow these dismal performances to carry on. The season has just begun, the least we can be is hopeful.

Till next time. Up the Reds !