Manchester United player who pocketed Man City star in FA Cup final is close to leaving
Erik ten Hag might be trophyless at Manchester United without Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
Wan-Bissaka played a crucial role in the Carabao Cup final and the FA Cup final and it feels like his contributions are often forgotten or underrated by those who only see his flaws.
United were two goals ahead of Newcastle at half-time in the Carabao Cup final, which essentially killed the contest, but the North East side were finding a way back into the game by attacking down Diogo Dalot's side and Allan Saint-Maximin was causing him different problems.
Dalot was shown an early yellow card and it was the right decision for Wan-Bissaka to replace him at the interval, a substitution that nullified the threat of Saint-Maximin.
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Saint-Maximin looked sharp, dangerous and unpredictable, but the introduction of Wan-Bissaka, who is an excellent one-on-one defender, immediately reduced his influence.
Wan-Bissaka kept Saint-Maximin quiet and his sliding tackles were met by roars from the East Stand, where United supporters were sitting. The right-back was brought onto the pitch to extinguish the fire and left the Wembley pitch with his reputation enhanced again.
There seems to be something about Wembley that coaxes the best out of Wan-Bissaka, as he rose to the occasion again 12 months on when facing Manchester City last season.
Dalot started on the left, which meant Wan-Bissaka got the nod to start on his favoured side, and he defended brilliantly, notably pocketing Jermy Doku when he came on.
Although Doku scored with just a few minutes remaining in the FA Cup, Andre Onana should have saved his effort