Adnan Januzaj tames Aston Villa on Manchester United return

Sport360 staff 00:44 15/08/2015
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  • Manchester United's players celebrate the goal of Adnan Januzaj against Aston Villa.

    Adnan Januzaj marked his Manchester United return with a goal as Louis van Gaal’s side beat Aston Villa 1-0 on Friday to claim a second consecutive Premier League victory.

    Making his first start since February, Januzaj converted a glorious pass from Juan Mata on the half-hour as United extended an unbeaten record in league games at Villa Park that now stands at 20 years.

    Following a 1-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur last weekend, this victory, in a game brought forward due to a far-right march in the area on Saturday, means United, now top of the table, have started a season with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2011.

    It took United until November 22 to record their first away win last season and with Van Gaal having pinpointed his side’s away form as an area in need of improvement, he will hope that this win augurs well for the campaign ahead.

    With Januzaj starting behind Wayne Rooney at number 10, Memphis Depay moved to the left flank for United, and both took time to settle, Depay bundled over by Jordan Veretout and Januzaj flattened by Idrissa Gueye.

    Villa could not set foot in the United box, though, and the visitors began to fire warning shots, with Brad Guzan forced to race from his goal and thwart Depay after the ball broke into the Dutchman’s path.

    United went ahead in the 29th minute courtesy of Januzaj, who has been linked with a loan move after falling out of favour in Van Gaal’s first season.

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    After drifting to the left flank from the right, Mata released Januzaj with a brilliant through ball and the Belgian left Micah Richards on the turf with a sharp turn before beating Guzan with the aid of a deflection off Ciaran Clark.

    It was his first league goal since January 2014.

    Villa manager Tim Sherwood pitched Gestede into the fray on the hour and Van Gaal introduced Bastian Schweinsteiger and Ander Herrera moments later.

    The introduction of German World Cup-winner Schweinsteiger, in place of Michael Carrick, gave United’s game a much-needed injection of composure and Depay squandered an excellent chance to add a second when he curled wide from Mata’s incisive pass.

     

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