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51 min \u201cThe Apres Match clip and talk of Eamon Dunphy reminds me of the peak years of Champions League on RTE in Ireland in the mid to late noughties,\u201d says John. \u201cYou would watch a dull group phase game but you would be treated to Dunphy, John Giles and Liam Brady arguing or complaining about the game. They were wrong half the time (\u2018this fella Ronaldo is a cod\u2019) but they were entertaining. You then had Apres Match come on to parody the ridiculousness of the whole thing.<\/p>\n
I can imagine if Brady, Giles and Dunphy were still on TV, they would not fancy Bruno at all,but his production for United is amazing without even considering how much of a mess the whole place has been since he joined the club.\u201d<\/p>\n
I was lucky enough to interview Dunphy when making Busby, and he was terrific. I asked him if had the tapes from the interviews he did for Strangre Kind of Glory \u2026 and he chucked them. Horrendous, but so in character.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n 50 min Er, not really. Mbeumo sewings to the back post, Maguire heads firmly but from a narrow angle, and Kelleher blocks.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 49 min Actually, it looks like a 5-2-2-1, with Mbeumo and Bruno behind Sesko. Meantime, United win a corner; will anyone bother marking Maguire and Casemiro?<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 47 min Carrick mustn\u2019t be happy with United\u2019s defending, and rightly so \u2013 they\u2019ve been very open, and seem to have gone to a back five, Mbeumo now up front alongside Sesko.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a016.06 EDT<\/p>\n 46 min Change for United: Mazraoui for Amad.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 46 min We go again\u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Half-time email: \u201cJonathan Wilson made the point this weekend in the Guardian that Premier League<\/a> teams have a safety first approach that compares unfavourably to the devil-may-care attacking of the best sides in Europe, PSG and Bayern,\u201d says K\u00e1ri Tulinius. \u201cThe Red Devils seem to have taken that to heart. I\u2019m a neutral, but United\u2019s defending has me on the verge of stress sweating, and yet they lead two goals to nil.\u201d<\/p>\n The generally defend the box fairly well, but their rest defence needs a lot of work. A new midfielder will presumably make a difference, not just in putting out fires but in keeping the ball down the other end, but I\u2019d also say they need two new full-backs.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Half-time reading:<\/p>\n Share<\/a>HALF-TIME: Manchester United 2-0 Brentford<\/p>\n A really entertaining first half which could\u2019ve seen five or six goals. But United\u2019s superior quality has made the difference, two good finishes and a couple of fine saves helping them to a two-goal lead<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45+1 min We talked earlier about Amad\u2019s ability to recover the ball \u2013 he\u2019s extremely tenacious for a little lad, and his timing is excellent. As we said, his numbers must improve, but the balance of Carrick\u2019s side is better with him in it.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45 min We\u2019ll have two additional minutes and Brentford<\/a> again move forward, a pass into the middle meeting the run of Jensen who swats fractionally wide of the left-hand post from the edge of the box, dead centre.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 45 min Bruno Fernandes, though. We shouldn\u2019t forget he played half of the season in deep midfield, and all of it without a prolific striker to finish his creations. His vision and execution aren\u2019t far off genius level.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>GOAL! Manchester United 2-0 Brentford (Sesko 43)<\/p>\n United come again, Amad winning a terrific challenge on the edge and finding Bruno, who moves through midfield, leading a three v two with Mbeumo to his right and Sesko left. He waits and waits, picks Sesko, delivers the pass, and the delayed, emphatic finish first gulls Van den Berg into sliding off towards the Megastore, then is swept high inside the near post with the keeper expecting the shot to go far. That\u2019s 19 league assists for Bruno, the record of 20 surely soon to go.<\/p>\n Benjamin Sesko fires home to double Manchester United\u2019s lead over Brentford. Photograph: Naomi Baker\/Getty ImagesSesko celebrates. Photograph: Simon Stacpoole\/Offside\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.56 EDT<\/p>\n 41 min For the first time in a while, United move it forward, Mbeumo finding bruno, who slides in to Amad, who finishes off the base of the far post \u2026 but the flag goes up and he\u2019s miles offside. Why did he go so early, especially given the ability of the man seeking to find him.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 41 min Van den Berg pulls Sesko back and is booked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 40 min The ball did indeed hit Heaven\u2019s arm, but it was in a natural position and not deliberate; United get the corner away, eventually.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 39 min Here come Brentford<\/a> again, Damasgaard pulling left to curve in another delicious pass. It goes over Maguire and Thiago is in between Heaven and Dalot, perhaps getting as hip to it as Heaven deflects with his arm; again, Lammens plunges, throwing up a strong arm to prang the ball behind.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 37 min Damsgaard caresses a gorgeous pass over the top and again, Thaigo is in behind Heaven! he takes a touch but, as he shapes to shoot, a telescopic left foot comes from arounds his body, effectively shooting for him, and Lammens saves from his own man. That\u2019s very good recovery-defending, but Thiago didn\u2019t protect the ball well enough.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.38 EDT<\/p>\n 35 min Outtara marches between Amad and Shaw, then threads a fine pass through the middle for Thaigo and he\u2019s in! But rather than hit it first time, he takes a touch, slips, and Heaven bumps it back to Lammens, just about. Brentford<\/a> are knocking at the door.<\/p>\n Igor Thiago loses his balance before being able to get a shot off. Photograph: Paul Currie\/ShutterstockShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.44 EDT<\/p>\n 34 min Brentford move it nicely as they look for holes in United\u2019s defence, then Mainoo crunches in on Kayode and the home side clear.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 31 min And here he is now, doing just that to touch off for Bruno who, on the edge, flights a lovely cross over Kayode\u2019s head and again, Amad is in space! But this time, he heads straight at Kelleher \u2026 then the flag goes up.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.35 EDT<\/p>\n 30 min I\u2019m not sure Sesko has had a kick yet. He\u2019s not had great service, but given the players outside him, he can come to the ball and lay it off as the runners motor.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 29 min Amad wins the first header but the ball comes back, and Mainoo does well to hook clear.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 27 min Damsgaard is pulling the strings for Brentford<\/a>, controlling their attacks, and when he slides a pass in behind, Lewis-Potter barges through one tackle, then wins a corner off Dalot.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 26 min Mainoo finds himself on the left wing and again, looks to attack his man, but Kayode is a terrific one-on-one defender and does enough to win the ball.<\/p>\n Kobbie Mainoo of Manchester United (centre left) is tackled by Brentford\u2019s Michael Kayode. Photograph: Adam Vaughan\/EPAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a015.46 EDT<\/p>\n 24 min Damsgaard spreads left then, when the ball goes right, Outtara\u2019s cross is blocked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 23 min Since that early run, Mainoo has been quiet, and that\u2019s been his problem so far \u2013 he must get better at finding the ball and passing it incisively. Chelsea felt like a step forward, but only if he maintains the level<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 22 min \u201cThere\u2019s an unbelievable amount of space in this game,\u201d reckons Tim Stappard, and I agree. Both sides are good at finding it and United are also excellent at leaving it \u2013 a situation I imagine they hope to address in the summer by signing midfielders<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 20 min When United opted to start the season with Andre Onana in net, it was mind-boggling enough, but seeing how solid Lammens is, it makes even less sense. He saves almost everything he should, which alone makes him a massive upgrade, and also plenty he shouldn\u2019t. There\u2019s work to do with his passing and foot-movement, especially when facing long shots, but he\u2019s been a monumental upgrade, and having him there has made a huge difference to United\u2019s defenders.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 18 min The resultant corner comes to nothing, but this is a really entertaining and open game.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 17 min oh, he does get a touch because it\u2019s a corner and gain, Brentford<\/a> pick a pass in behind United, Damsgaard sliding in for Kayode as the defence steps up. He looks to send an outswinging finish towards the far side-netting, but Lammens spreads himself well to make the save.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 16 min But then United give it away and Outtara seizes upon the loose ball, slipping a fine reverse-pass in behind for Lewis-Potter, who delivers a perfect low cross into the corridor. Thiago is there, but Shaw slides in and must put him off, because he doesn\u2019t get a touch but the striker can\u2019t land a boot on it.<\/p>\n