If anything encapsulated a trying afternoon for Manchester United, it was the sight of Paul Pogba being booked for a crude challenge as the clock ticked into second-half stoppage time, seconds after the Southampton striker Che Adams made a superb sliding tackle on Bruno Fernandes. United wiped the floor with Leeds last weekend but had to settle for a point here as Mason Greenwood equalised to extend their unbeaten away league run to 27 games, matching Arsenal’s top-flight record.
Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side were erratic and off-colour, teasing only patches of class for the noisy travelling fans. Southampton proved fiendish opponents, successfully shackling United’s glittering cast and could have earned victory on another day. For Solskjær, the warning signs were there long before Adams’ shot beat David de Gea, via a wicked deflection off Fred, with half an hour gone. “We lost our heads when they scored,” Solskjær said.
