There was no sense of magic in the air – just the smell of hand sanitizer. Manchester United was forced to work devilishly hard to reserve their spot in the FA Cup semi-finals, but as they secured a 2-1 overtime win over Norwich City on Carrow Road, it was difficult. escape the idea that this competition will prove to be the one that suffers most from the absence of fans.
Norwich deserved better, having passed a nervous start to show recovery skills and courage. A game with fine margins went against them in part because they had a home advantage only in the name. The impact of supporters is obviously impossible to quantify, but the Canaries needed a twelfth man here, and would have acted as a sort of leveler, especially when Norwich had fallen to 10 men on the field after Timm Klose’s dismissal.
The essence of the mysticism of the Cup of England, diminished even if it is undeniably even in normal circumstances, derives from the sense of the occasion, the simple equation of a direct elimination format that mixes the imaginations not interrupted by the shape of the league. This has been the first quarter final of the Norwich FA Cup since 1992; the city would have been animated all day, the anticipation would have started an early evening kick in a stadium enthusiastic about that intoxicating cocktail of hope and challenge.
A Premier League team mistreated and threatened by relegations was simultaneously 90 minutes from Wembley, with the aim of achieving a result that could in turn give new life to their survival fight. Instead, a stage sterilized to safeguard those inside from the coronavirus pandemic has been deprived of emotions in a way in which we are sadly accustomed and deprived of the partisan atmosphere that would have made this even harder for United.
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The game plan of the Canarian manager Daniel Farke would have benefited from a fervent support. Norwich sat deep in a 4-1-4-1 form, trying to stay compact and hit United on the break. Every tackle would have been encouraged, every counterattack roared. The moment would have increased. Instead, Norwich seemed to be delaying the inevitable.
That doesn’t mean United have been particularly lively in the first half, however. A team with eight changes from the fluid Premier League victory over Sheffield United has been shocked. Even Bruno Fernandes couldn’t help but slip into a pattern of out of place passes and blurred paths, even though they were increasingly likely to score. Teemu Pukki only touched the ball in half of United once in the first 30 minutes, a sign of how isolated the Finnish forward was since Norwich apparently didn’t have the legs – or the will – to move forward.
Maguire blocked Lukas Rupp’s shot while the first half ended, but neither worked until Odion Ighalo scored with the first shot on goal on both sides.
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Six minutes after the reboot, Luke Shaw beat Emi Buendia too easily on United’s left and crossed the box. Juan Mata raised the ball in the air but turned to Ighalo, who found himself in space and made a shot with the outside of his right foot beyond Tim Krul.
Fernandes’ arrival in January was rightly announced for both his superbly consistent individual performances and the injection of confidence he apparently gave to those around him, but the acquisition of Ighalo is proving more useful than many they thought possible. This has been his fifth goal since signing a loan from Shanghai Shenhua. All of them have participated in cup competitions and while the 31 year old would not have frightened the hearts of the best defenses, he lightened the weight of Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial and showed a sincere love for the club that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes that he could unsubscribe from others .
Rashford, and later Martial, were kept here, however, after Norwich challenged the conditions and logic for equalizing. Todd Cantwell’s 75th minute strike did not have maximum power, but the sloppy attempt by United goalkeeper Sergio Romero to dive to his left was compounded by the ball that deflected him at a crucial moment.
Suddenly, Norwich looked enthusiastic. Buendia launched a shot just wide of Romero’s right post. Onel Hernandez drove firmly into the box, only to be stopped by superb sliding gear from substitute United Brandon Williams. The pendulum had swung so much that visitors were in second place when the game had definitely moved in their favor, despite having called the cavalry in the shape of Rashford, Paul Pogba, Mason Greenwood, Nemanja Matic and Brandon Williams.
Fernandes’ inventive film gave Ighalo the chance to transform Klose. Norwich’s central defender faces Ighalo on the ground, but somehow has the audacity to protest his red card from referee Jon Moss. United spent the rest of the normal time camped in mid-Norwich but the home team resisted.
Imagine how home fans would respond.
Crowd singing played on the sound system as both the second part and the overtime started as a pale imitation. Norwich was under the cosh, a man on the ground but fighting, demolishing while the extra time looked like an attack on defense game.
Solskjaer launched Martial for Eric Bailly in an attempt to overwhelm Norwich, but they managed to get through the first additional period intact. The song of the AP crowd appeared again, apparently louder, but nothing like the crescendo that the real thing would have reached by now. Krul threw himself to his left to keep Maguire’s header out. Wave after pressure surge from United pushed Norwich back, but a shootout was in sight.
That is, until the 118th minute. Pogba played the ball against Ighalo in the penalty area. He helped him on Martial and while Ben Godfrey struggled to free, Maguire leapt forward to sweep the ball home with his left foot.
United’s relief was palpable. Norwich was in ruins, having given so much only to come shortly. Krul’s antics on penalties are notorious, but he has been denied the opportunity to open his box of tricks.
“It seemed strange to play this type of game behind closed doors, especially in this game because it was the biggest success for this club in the FA Cup for [almost] 30 years, “said Farke after the game.” It would have had a fantastic atmosphere and would have made our fans proud, but I think that’s what we did with this performance and desire too. We want to feel the interaction and create new memories for them, but at the moment it’s a new normal. At least we can play football. “
On a banner lying on a section of empty seats on the opposite side of the ground read: “You cannot see us and you cannot hear us, but we will always be with you.” How Norwich lost them today.
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