Fulham Puncture Man Utd As Man City, Arsenal Close On Liverpool

Manchester, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Feb, 2024) Manchester United's air of optimism was punctured as Alex Iwobi's 97th minute winner handed Fulham their first win at Old Trafford since 2003, while Manchester City edged past Bournemouth 1-0 to close the gap on leaders Liverpool to one point.

With Liverpool in League Cup final action against Chelsea on Sunday, City and Arsenal -- 4-1 winners against Newcastle -- used their game in hand to put pressure on Jurgen Klopp's men.

Taking part in the title race, however, is a distant dream for United at present.

The completion of Jim Ratcliffe's minority stake in United this week and a spell of good form had brought hope of a fresh start for the Red Devils.

United had won their previous four Premier League games to rekindle hope of qualifying for next season's Champions League, but a 2-1 defeat leaves them eight points adrift of Aston Villa.

Ratcliffe revealed his ambition to topple City and Liverpool at the top of the English game within three years.

But the work that lies ahead of the British billionaire on and off the field was exposed as Fulham dominated a ragged United for long spells.

Fulham finally took one of their chances midway through the second half when Calvin Bassey lashed home his first goal for the Cottagers from a corner.

United looked to have snatched a point against the run of play late on when Harry Maguire tapped in after Bernd Leno spilled Bruno Fernandes' effort.

But there was another twist in the tale as Adama Traore left Maguire trailing in his wake before teeing up Iwobi to curl inside Andre Onana's near post.

"We went for the win but by the end we let them slip away," United boss Erik ten Hag said.