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Manchester United thrashed Bournemouth 3-0 at Old Trafford to tie third-place Newcastle in the Premier League standings on points.
Erik ten Hag's squad took the lead midway through the first half with a controlled volley from Casemiro off a Christian Eriksen free-kick. Luke Shaw doubled the lead early in the second half with a skillful team goal. Marcus Rashford scored the third goal courtesy of Shaw's excellent assist. In addition to bringing back Harry Maguire and Marcus Rashford, Ten Hag made alterations to the lineup, starting Donny van de Beek at home for the first time in 19 months. However, he was forced to leave the game before halftime due to an injury sustained in a hard challenge. The changes however did not see United lose their momentum as witnessed by the assist of Alejandro Garnacho for the second goal who was also brought into the game. It was United's sixth consecutive victory overall, and it was richly deserved. The relegation threat looms large over Bournemouth as they hang on with just two points above the relegation zone. Following a two-goal deficit, Bournemouth did improve. Before the hour mark, David de Gea made three stops in quick succession, and Siriki Dembele's cross even hit the crossbar in stoppage time, but by that point, it was already too late for the club who succumbed to its seventh defeat in eight matches. "We are still in a process. In the first half, we control the game but don't play brilliantly. In the second half, we make a great counter. But we have to be smart. Stay compact. Make them run. You will have chances. We feel strong but we only stay strong if we do our jobs and give 100 per cent in every situation. I did not have that feeling. I had a feeling we thought it was easy and the game was gone. But if they make it 2-1 then the game is not gone. The belief is growing and it is good to have that feeling but we have to understand that we have to give 100 per cent in every game," said Ten Hag after the match as quoted by Sky Sports. Bournemouth's manager Gary O'Neil applauded the players despite the loss and said that the team did not deserve to lose by a margin of three goals. "Nobody wants to lose 3-0 and we did not deserve to lose 3-0 but if you are going to lose 3-0 that is the way to do it," said Bournemouth boss Gary O'Neil afterwards. In the second half, we tried to be slightly more aggressive, press slightly more often, but we get one slightly wrong. We had six big chances and David de Gea [was] making good saves. I thought the majority of United's chances came after we opened the pitch up. The only disappointment is that if we arrive in those positions we have to score the goal. At 2-1 it could have been different. The important thing is that it looked like us today. It has done apart from the Palace game. If we produce that every time we will climb the table," expressed O'Neil after the match. Manchester United will host Everton in the FA Cup third round on January 6 and then play Charlton in the Carabao Cup quarterfinal at Old Trafford on January 10. United will resume Premier League play on January 14 when rival Manchester City visits Old Trafford. Before visiting Brentford in the Premier League on January 14, Bournemouth will host Burnley in the FA Cup's third round on Saturday. (ANI)
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