Anthony Elanga puts Manchester United on path to win at Brentford

Not for the first time and almost certainly not for the last, this mercurial bunch of Manchester United players served up a night’s work that defied cogent analysis. They should have been buried by Brentford in the first half but turned up for the second and pulled clear with exceptionally-worked goals from Anthony Elanga, Mason Greenwood and the substitute Marcus Rashford. Some of their speed and slickness after the break bore the hallmarks of Ralf Rangnick, who will be delighted by the eventual shift in gear. Ivan Toney’s late consolation was the least his side deserved and Brentford will rue a number of missed chances.

Brentford would like Christian Eriksen to help add guile to their customarily high-octane approach but their existing forces proved more than capable of asking questions. They pegged United back in the early exchanges, a booming long throw from Mads Bech Sørensen setting the tone, and Mathias Jensen could have done better than snatch a volley harmlessly wide after a clearance sat up for him on the edge of the area.

Rangnick had kept faith with Elanga, who was bright in the wasteful draw at Aston Villa, while reintroducing the newly-available Cristiano Ronaldo and Scott McTominay. When Elanga found several yards of space beyond the far post and looped a header across goal, the league debutant Jonas Lössl’s uncertain punch forced rapid evasive action from Sergi Canós as attackers lurked.

That was scratchy defending, but United soon topped it in a chaotic spell that saw Brentford come close four times in two minutes. When a loose pass at the back allowed Christian Nørgaard to send Jensen away, the angle favoured the home midfielder rather than David de Gea. But the finish was tame and De Gea could save