Manchester United were held to a 1-1 draw by Newcastle at St James’ Park in their worst display so far under Ralf Rangnick.
Allan Saint-Maximin opened the scoring for the Magpies after just seven minutes with a neat finish from outside the box after cutting through United’s defence.
United have recorded 1-0 wins over Crystal Palace and Norwich respectively so far in Rangnick’s first two matches but have yet to look convincing and the Red Devils were well off the pace this evening.
Wasteful in possession, sloppy at the back, and little threat up top, there were plenty of poor performances across the pitch. However, Cavani came to Rangnick’s rescue to net the equaliser with United desperately looking for a way back into the game.
Like Varane, the veteran forward was making his first appearance since early November and made a real difference to United’s attacking threat once he came on at half-time.
Cavani not only took his goal well, converting a cross from Diogo Dalot’s ball across the box after an initial block but could also be seen barking orders at his teammates.
A player of Cavani’s experience helped push Marcus Rashford and Sancho into creating the necessary chances expected while also upping the intensity of the press.
