BBC pundit Clinton Morrison singled out one Manchester United player for praise during today’s FA Cup semi-final victory over Coventry City.
Despite the doubts surrounding his future at Old Trafford, Erik ten Hag will have the opportunity to pick up his second piece of silverware as Manchester United boss this season.
United headed into halftime with a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Scott McTominay and Harry Maguire.
Ten Hag’s side certainly deserved their lead and probably should have had a couple more, with Alejandro Garnacho and Marcus Rashford also going close.
While United looked dangerous in the final third in the opening 45 minutes, it was a defender who caught Morrison’s eye.
Morrison lauds Man United player during Coventry clash
Diogo Dalot was heavily involved in United’s best moments from right-back during the first half.
The Portuguese defender provided the assist for McTominay’s opener as his drilled cross was met by the Scotsman for a simple finish.
“It was only a matter of time until Coventry were going to get punished,” Morrison said.
“Diogo Dalot has been excellent for Man Utd, he whips the ball in and Scott McTominay taps it into an empty net.”
While United didn’t have a lot of defending to do in the opening period, Dalot prevented what looked to be a certain goal for Coventry.
The £19 million defender produced a last-ditch interception to stop Ellis Simms from getting on the end of a ball across the box.
Man United avoid huge FA Cup upset
Following a dominant first-half performance, United thought they had put the game beyond doubt as Bruno Fernandes got on the scoresheet.
The United skipper latched onto a loose ball from Joel Latibeaudiere before beating the Coventry goalkeeper at his near post.
With Ten Hag’s men producing inconsistent performances of late, many believed there could be an upset on the cards at Wembley. And Coventry certainly threatened to produce what would have gone down as one of the greatest comebacks in FA Cup history.
The Sky Blues grabbed a goal back through Simms in the 71st minute as the Everton loanee produced a well-taken finish following some questionable defending from United.
Callum O’Hare’s deflected effort then beat Andre Onana just eight minutes later to set up a nervy end to the game for United.
Haji Wright then completed a sensational comeback by netting in the 95th minute to force the game to extra time.
Victor Torp thought he had won it for the Sky Blues in the final moments of extra time but VAR ruled his effort out due to an offside in the build-up.
Despite a poor penalty from Casemiro, United prevailed on penalties and booked their spot at Wembley where they will face Manchester City for the second year running.
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