MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 29: Andre Onana of Manchester United. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Nottingham Forest midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White thought his shot was too central to beat Andre Onana, but it somehow went past the Man United goalkeeper.
The Red Devils rounded off a miserable week by falling short against their visitors at Old Trafford on Saturday. Ruben Amorim had already sustained his first defeat as Man United boss on Wednesday, coming at the hands of Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
But while an away loss against the Gunners was hardly a shocker, United fans were hoping that the team would deliver a result at home against the Garibaldis.
However, Onana wasn’t on his day, to say the least.
The Cameroonian custodian was beaten by a central shot from Gibbs-White who restored Forest’s lead after the interval, and then failed to react on Chris Wood’s lobbed header, with Lisandro Martinez also doing little to prevent the goal, despite being at the back post.
Hence, Bruno Fernandes’ strike wasn’t enough to prevent the defeat, with the final scoreline showing 3-2 in favor of the visitors.
Morgan Gibbs-White expected Andre Onana to save his goal attempt
SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND – MAY 04: Morgan Gibbs-White of Nottingham Forest controls the ball with his head as he warms up prior to the Premier League match between Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest at Bramall Lane on May 04, 2024 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)
For his part, Gibbs-White admitted he was stunned to see his shot hit the back of the net.
“I didn’t [think it was going in] at all, to be fair,” said the 24-year-old in his post-match interview with Sky Sports.
“I don’t want to discredit Onana, he’s an incredible goalkeeper, but when I had the shot, I thought he was going to pick it up.
“But hey, you count them, don’t you! I’m happy to contribute to the team.”
This wasn’t the first time Forest managed to tame a Premier League giant this season, as they remain the only team to beat Liverpool at Anfield this term.
“It’s hard to put into words, but we have to keep believing in the process, the manager and believe we have a good enough squad to compete at this level. We did it at Anfield and we did it here [at Old Trafford].”
This result puts Nottingham in an incredible fifth place in the standings, while Man United are lying in a miserable 13th place.