Casemiro red card stalls Manchester United in draw against Southampton

Frantic, vibrant, tetchy on occasion, and featuring a first-half Casemiro sending off which may mean a four-game ban: as a goalless draw this was breathless entertainment and the point Manchester United and Southampton emerged with a fair result.

United did not like the Brazilian’s dismissal which, as a second this season (in his past eight outings), could invoke an extra-match tariff, or much else of the performance of Anthony Taylor as he later turned down two penalty shouts. But despite their lowly position Southampton were a muscular, pacy opponent and will feel they might have won on another day.

For the closing phases Erik ten Hag removed Jadon Sancho and Antony for Facundo Pellistri and Alejandro Garnacho as he sought the victory despite United’s man disadvantage. It did not work but there was a rip-roaring finish and you could admire the Dutchman’s courage particularly after last weekend’s debacle at Anfield.

A home game, though, against the bottom team had seemed the ideal foe on returning to league action after that 7–0 trouncing by Liverpool. Ten Hag, who likes a tactical tweak, placed Sancho at No 10 which was a way of accommodating him, Antony, Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and Wout Weghorst in a front five of an XI featuring only Casemiro as a holding player.

The Brazilian was as lackadaisical when passing straight to James Ward-Prowse as Lisandro Martínez was when committing a similar misdemeanour. After the latter was booked, Southampton tapped the ball about from the free-kick, Kyle Walker-Peters fired a grass-cutter at David de Gea, and he saved.

United soaked all this up and counter-punched. Fernandes tried to roll Rashford in and Southampton thwarted him; then Luke Shaw flipped up a cross for