Talking Points: Fulham 1 United 2

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side secured all three Premier League points, with Edinson Cavani and Paul Pogba scoring the goals after Ademola Lookman's opener put Scott Parker's side in front early on.

After our 2-1 triumph by the Thames, let’s have a look at some of the key talking points…

Bruno Fernandes made a landmark 50th appearance for United on Wednesday evening. The Portuguese magnifico has been instrumental since his move from Sporting Lisbon almost a year ago, with 44 direct goal involvements (27 goals, 17 assists) in that time. At Craven Cottage, the 26-year-old was unlucky not to add to his tally as a rocket strike hit the post just before our equaliser. He did, however, send in the low cross ahead of Cavani's equaliser and put in a solid shift as the Reds ran out 2-1 winners in the capital. 

Edinson Cavani scored his fifth goal for the club with a real poacher’s effort, reacting to a loose ball inside the six-yard area midway through the first half. In doing so, the Uruguayan became the first United player to register his first four Premier League strikes away from home. As well, the striker’s finish was also his first as a starter in the league, having previously netted after coming off the bench against Southampton (2) and Everton. 

POGBOOM

Paul Pogba continued his tremendous form with another dominant display in midfield. This time, he made up a duo with Fred, but playing further back did not prevent him from making a significant attacking contribution. Midway through the second half, Pogba smashed in United’s winner as we went 2-1 up. It was his third goal of the league season, and like Cavani, all of his efforts have come away from home in this campaign. The execution at Craven Cottage meant it was Pogba's first left-foot strike from outside the area since January 2015, when he netted one for Juventus against Chievo, and his first with the left foot for United since February 2019 - when we also beat Fulham away.

BACK ON TOP

After Leicester City’s win over Chelsea on Tuesday and Manchester City’s triumph over Aston Villa earlier on Wednesday evening, United started the match in south-west London in third place in the Premier League. However, when the 90 minutes were up, the Reds had reclaimed top spot. Solskjaer's men have now played 19 league games, making this the halfway point in the season.

COMEBACK KINGS

United have now taken 21 of our 40 points from losing positions in this Premier League season, having won all seven away games in which we have fallen behind. The next team on the list of points claimed from comebacks are Liverpool, who have earned 10 points - less than half our tally.

UNBEATEN RUN EXTENDED

Wednesday’s result means United have now gone 13 games unbeaten in the Premier League with our last defeat coming at the start of November, against Arsenal at Old Trafford. We are also yet to lose away from home in this league campaign, with our 10 road trips yielding eight wins and two draws.

RARE RASHFORD REST

The match at Craven Cottage was only the second one in this Premier League campaign that Marcus Rashford has not started. The other time he was on the bench also happened to be in London, where our no. 10 came off the bench to score our final goal in the 3-1 win against West Ham in December. The Wythenshawe man replaced Mason Greenwood in the 85th minute as we saw out the win over Fulham and that entrance meant he maintained his run of featuring in every game this season - he's the only Red to have done that this term.

OLE'S ROTATION

In his pre-match press conference, our Norwegian manager emphasised the strength in depth of United’s squad. From the side that faced Liverpool at Anfield, he made three changes to his team selection, with Eric Bailly, Greenwood and Cavani coming in for Victor Lindelof, Scott McTominay and Rashford. The boss revealed that Lindelof's back injury was again the reason for his absence but he stated the Swede could be fit for the weekend.