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Manchester United u19s kicked off their involvement at the Mladen Ramljak Memorial tournament on Thursday against French opposition, AS Monaco.
It was a bad start for the young reds though as just one minute in, some loose passing at the back gave possession away and shortly after Monaco were quick to pounce and smash into the roof of the net past Elyh Harrison.
It was all Monaco in the opening 10 minutes and they threatened with another attempt on goal as they got down the right and crossed to the middle for a wide open header but the Monaco midfielder couldn’t get enough power behind it to threaten Harrison.
United began to find their feet though and equalised in the 17th minute. Jack Moorhouse ran in to intercept the Monaco keeper’s pass and slid it past him before he could adjust his positioning. .
Ethan Williams then sent in a low cross from the right flank that was flicked on by Victor Musa but stopped by a strong hand from the Monaco keeper.
Just after the half hour mark, the Monaco winger got past Habeeb Ogunneye on the outside and the United defender stretching on the recovery took him down for a penalty. Monaco’s number nine stepped up sent Harrison the wrong way, calmly sliding the ball into the bottom right corner.
United pulled it back moments before the break though when Williams cuts in from the left and struck low and hard and the keeper couldn’t keep his hand on it as it bounced into the bottom left corner to make it all level at 2-2 going into the second half.
The first big chance after the restart came Monaco’s way when their left winger was played in behind the United defence but Harrison was out quick to cover the angles and make a huge save.
Shea Lacey was introduced off the bench shortly after and it didn’t take long for him to make an impact as he slalomed through the Monaco defenders before forcing a save that could only be parried into the path of Musa to tap in and give United the lead.
Shea Lacey danced through the Monaco defenders before Victor Musa scored the winning goal for United in the opening fixture. The young reds continue at the Mladen Ramljak Memorial today taking on Udinese at 3:30 BST. #MUFC #MUAcademy pic.twitter.com/mh8htMk9Fb
— Manchester United Academy (@RedYouthUnited) August 4, 2023
Monaco fought back by working it into the United box on the left side for a close range shot but Harrison was there to save the day again with a spectacular save.
In the 68th Monaco had a huge chance when they broke through on a 2 on 1 and squared it for the easy goal but the right winger soared it over the bar.
Late in the match, Finley McAllister laid the ball inside to Lacey 25 yards out for a strike towards the bottom right corner that was tipped around the post.
Final whistle came with United holding on to their 3-2 lead, giving them a win to open the tournament. United’s next fixture is on Friday as they take on Italian side Udinese.
United: Harrison, McAllister, Munro, Jackson, Ogunneye, Fitzgerald, Devaney (Baumann 58), Williams (Missin 65), Moorhouse (Lacey 52), Scanlon (Berry 58), Musa (Biancheri 65)