Town spurned a golden chance to win at Old Trafford and gain some ground in the relegation battle as they were beaten 3-2 by 10-man Manchester United. Jaden Philogene was gifted his first league goal for Town in the fourth minute by a defensive mix-up, but United went into a 2-1 lead through a Sam Morsy own goal and Matthijs de Ligt rebound. Two minutes before the break, Patrick Dorgu was shown a straight red card for a foul on Omari Hutchinson following a VAR review and Town levelled through Philogene’s second goal, a cross sneaking into the corner of the net. The game looked there for the Blues but after conceding a Harry Maguire header two minutes after the restart, United’s third goal from a set piece, they never seriously threatened to get back on terms at manager Kieran McKenna’s old club.

Town made two changes with former Red Devil Axel Tuanzebe and skipper Morsy returning to the side picked by McKenna, a United U18s and first-team coach before he joined the Blues.

Tuanzebe came back in his usual right-sided defensive role having missed Saturday’s 4-1 defeat to Spurs due to a one-match ban. Ben Godfrey, who replaced the DR Congo international at the weekend, dropped out of the squad.

Morsy replaced Kalvin Phillips, who suffered a calf problem against Tottenham and was not in the 20-man party, in midfield with Jens Cajuste fine despite hurting his ankle at the weekend.

United, who had nine first-team squad members injured, made two changes of their own from the team which drew 2-2 at Everton on Saturday with Noussair Mazraoui, who picked up a knock at Goodison Park, and Casemiro dropping to the bench and Leny Yoro and Alejandro Garnacho coming into the XI.

The game started in the heavy rain which had fallen most of the afternoon. And as against Spurs, the Blues began on the front foot, Jack Clarke playing a pass along the 18-yard line for Liam Delap, who took it into the box but scuffed his shot wide, the wet ball perhaps sliding off his foot.

But the Town fans in the corner at that end of the ground didn’t have to wait too long for a goal.

Dara O’Shea hit a long ball for Philogene but beyond the former Aston Villa man and Dorgu should have had an easy job of tidying up. However, the Danish international wing-back knocked it back towards goal but with keeper Andre Onana having advanced to within a few yards of him and Philogene was presented with the simplest chance of his career, tapping into an empty goal from a few feet.

The surprised but grateful Blues supporters delightedly celebrated Town’s first goal at Old Trafford since Chris Kiwomya netted in a 1-1 draw in 1992.

Shell-shocked United looked to hit back and in the 10th minute, a deep Bruno Fernandes corner from the left reached Maguire and Alex Palmer did well to push the ball away to his left. Diogo Dalot’s follow-up looped deep into the Stretford End.

The home side saw most of the ball, although without looking particularly convincing. However, on 22 they levelled.

A harsh free-kick was awarded against Cajuste on the left, the Sweden international having felt he won the ball. Fernandes whipped the ball over and Morsy, under the attention of Rasmus Hojlund, headed into his own goal. Town appeals for a foul fell on deaf ears with VAR confirming the equaliser, a decision which looked correct.

The Blues were making entreaties to referee Darren England at the other end on 25, Maguire appearing to pull back Delap inside the box as the striker held the ball up. But referee England and VAR again ruled against the Blues and a penalty would have been harsh.

And a minute later, United went in front from another Fernandes set piece. Maguire again won the corner delivery from the left, his header was stopped by Palmer, who also got down to his right to save Dalot’s subsequent effort, however, De Ligt was on hand to slam the rebound into the roof of the net.

United had been unconvincing but Town’s defending from set pieces even more so with Maguire having had his earlier opportunity in addition to the two goals.

However, having gained their lead, the home side were looking more at ease and in greater control. On 34 Morsy was booked for a foul on Joshua Zirkzee, the Egypt international’s eighth yellow card of the season with a 10th leading to a two-game ban.

Three minutes later, Philogene gifted the ball to Garnacho on the left, the Argentinian international taking it into the area before being outmuscled by Tuanzebe, unfairly according to the home fans and players but referee England showed no interest. Play continued and Palmer saved Dorgu’s effort from distance.

On 39, Garnacho broke towards the edge of the area in space before Tuanzebe came across to make an inch-perfect sliding challenge that the Manchester United forward clearly felt.

As the half moved into its final five minutes, Dorgu lunged in at Hutchinson on the touchline, catching the former Chelsea man, who was making his 50th start for the club, halfway up his shin.

Referee England initially gave nothing but VAR called him over to the screen and, after a lengthy review, Dorgu was shown a straight red card, the first opposition player to be dismissed during a Town game this season.

The footage was clear, Dorgu caught Hutchinson with his studs up halfway up his shin and once the referee had seen that, there was little doubt Dorgu would be on his way.

United immediately made a change, swapping Garnacho for Mazraoui as they sought to shore things up at the back.

But before the Moroccan had settled into the game, with the half in four minutes of injury time, the Blues got back on terms. Philogene crossed from the right towards Delap in the middle, the striker failed to get to get a touch but the ball curled into the corner of the net to send the Town fans wild once again.

There was just time for one more incident before the break, Hojlund clashing with O’Shea, leaving him on the floor, then trying to drag the Irishman up off the turf with the Dubliner clearly unimpressed. While the Town support called for a second red card, referee England booked both the United forward and Blues defender.

The Town fans cheered the whistle, while the home support booed off the referee, which seemed a little harsh given the nature of the red card.

Despite having been handed the lead so early on, the Blues never looked comfortable, even with United having looked lacking in confidence and belief.

Town’s failure to defend set pieces allowed the Red Devils the lead, before Dorgu’s red card changed the dynamic of the game in the final minutes, Philogene netting his second slightly fortuitous goal of the match.

However, three minutes after the restart, the Blues were made to pay for their weakness on set pieces once again. Fernandes sent over a corner from the right and Maguire was again left unmarked to pick his spot and plant a header beyond Palmer to make it 3-2.

Town looked to hit back again, Delap hitting a shot from just outside the area which deflected off a defender and out for a corner. Leif Davis’s flag-kick was headed away by Maguire.

But the Blues were unconvincing as they sought a second equaliser, although a Philogene strike from just outside the box was blocked

United worked a better chance on the hour, Philogene giving the ball away to Yoro, who got to the byline and crossed to Hojlund, who dummied but with no one behind him. However, Davis slammed it against a United player and not far behind.

Soon after Zirkzee had been booked for delaying a restart in the Blues final third, Cajuste saw an effort blocked.

Town had been disappointing since the break, the early goal appearing to have knocked the stuffing out of the, but in the 65th minute Clarke played in Cajuste on the left of the area and the on-loan Napoli man cut across the six-yard box to Philogene, but the earlier two-goal scorer bundled the ball out at a tight angle. Although it came to nothing, it was the Blues’ best football of the second half.

Town made a double change soon afterwards, Nathan Broadhead and Jack Taylor replacing Hutchinson, who had just undergone treatment for a knock, and Morsy. United swapped Hojlund for Casemiro.

On 73, Town worked a clever corner on the left, Clarke playing a short ball to Philogene as the winger came out from the box and the ex-Hull City man laid it off to Taylor on the edge of the area but the Irish international screwed his shot wide, much to his evident frustration.

The Blues were now seeing most of the ball but without the guile to find a way passed a United defence which was happy to soak up pressure and make the occasional break. And when they did so they looked more threatening than Town, Mazraoui sliding in just too late to reach at Fernandes cross from the left in the 78th minute.

Town, who had continued to make little headway, made another double change in the 81st minute, Davis and Tuanzebe coming off for George Hirst and Ben Johnson with Clarke going to left-back in a 4-2-2-2.

The Blues won three corners in quick succession, O’Shea heading wide at the far post from the third of them, Johnson having sent the ball over.

On 85, Delap challenged Manuel Ugarte strongly and Mazraoui, who had clashed with the Town striker at Portman Road, slammed into the England U21 international with the game briefly threatening to boil over. Referee England awarded a free-kick and booked both Delap and Mazraoui.

With the match in the first of four added minutes, the Blues switched Cajuste for Sammie Szmodics with play subsequently held up as stewards tackled a fan who had run out of the home end towards the pitch. United then switched Zirkzee and Yoro for Christian Eriksen and Victor Lindelof.

The ball was at the Town end in the closing stages, Johnson picking up a booking for a foul on Fernandes before referee England brought the game to a close.

A deeply disappointing evening for the Blues who will have no better chance to win at Old Trafford than the position they found themselves in at half-time and put in probably their worst 45 minutes of the season, given the context.

Having once again failed to defend a set piece just after the break, they never put the home side under any serious pressure despite the disparity in numbers with the performance lacking drive and guile as the home side dug in and held onto their lead, while looking significantly more dangerous on the break.

Town remain five points plus goal difference from safety following the midweek fixtures with the game another they may look back on as a missed opportunity should they be relegated in May.

Manchester United: Onana, De Ligt, Maguire, Yoro (Lindelof 92), Dalot, Ugarte, Fernandes (c), Dorgu, Garnacho (Mazraoui 45), Hojlund (Casemiro 67), Zirkzee (Eriksen 92). Unused: Harrison, Graczyk, Heaven, Eriksen, Obi.

Town: Palmer, Tuanzebe (Johnson 81), O’Shea, Greaves, Davis (Hirst 81), Morsy (c) (Taylor 66), Cajuste (Szmodics 91), Philogene, Hutchinson (Broadhead 66), Clarke, Delap. Unused: Muric, Woolfenden, Johnson, Townsend, Luongo. Referee: Darren England (Doncaster). VAR official: Craig Pawson. Att: 73,827.

Photo: Action Images via Reuters

Leejames99 added 22:29 - Feb 26 So funny the comments on here, ridiculous, it may be a bad Man utd team by their standards but firstly they still above us, they are still players of the highest quality, in what world do some of you think morsy can compete with Fernades and Urgarte in middle of park. Someone put Delap 40 million but should get 72 million, firstly he isn't prolific and doesn't pass but has potential to be amazing and if a club is looking to pay 72 million they will be paying it to Man City not town, the most we can get is 40 million from City. People saying we wasted 120 million, so funny tottenhams subs cost that, in last 4 seasons we spent £0, 2 Million, 2 Million and 4 million bit of a jump to £120 million which is nothing in terms of Prem players and the siinnings we have made were with Championship in mind, fans talking like its a given we should beat Man Utd lol we held Villa with 10 who are in Champions league. I really hope Mckenna rests every new signing on Monday in cuo and plays Dads Army and we see just how bad they are in Prem they are league one players, only Woolf, Broadhead are good enough Still 33 points to play for while we still in it we are still in it, Morsy and Davis have to be dropped, maybe cup game be a good thanks and bye game for them.

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SuperTabby added 22:31 - Feb 26 So many problems on display today. Lacked ideas going forwards. We didn’t have any width, which is exactly what you need to be doing against ten men. We take far too long to make decisions in possession, often the pass is gone by the time they’ve realised what they should be doing. Really poor defending from set pieces. We’re losing the 1v1 duels far too often, and then we’re just too open at the back. We don’t seem to have any attacking patterns of play, the players don’t seem to have an idea of how to create anything. Both the goals we scored were pretty lucky if we’re honest. We’re lacking quality and belief and are looking way out of our depth. Similar themes throughout the season, but early on in the season we were playing fairly well but getting a bit unlucky. Now we’re playing woefully and can barely pick up a point, let alone win a match. I think the writing was on the wall after the Southampton game, but we really need to see some better performances. We’ve spent decent money on this squad, and I don’t think we’re seeing enough from them. I’m not expecting us to go and win loads of matches, but they need to show more than what we’ve seen in 2025. The only decent performance was when we went down to ten men vs Villa.

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EricGatesShinpad added 22:33 - Feb 26 A really frustrating night.... As many others have said we will never have another chance like that to beat United at Old Trafford...... I think we have really missed Chaplin.... He can unlock defence, we just don't have that... First time in a long time I have felt genuinely sad.... Yes the guys endeavour was there so I can't fault that but we just fell short...again ....

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blueytops added 22:38 - Feb 26 Here we go, is this our preferred team Palmer Johnson - links well with Omari and get him moving up the pitch O’Shea Woolfy - can get the team moving forward has passing ability Burgess - will throw his body on the line Townsend - solid defender Cajuste - our best midfielder Enciso - has the X factor Szmodics - A goalscorer Delap - no explanation needed Hutchinson - pace on the right wing Both sammy and Omari can alternate as a No.10

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oldegold added 22:43 - Feb 26 Have the players given up already? After a dire performance like that it would seem so...correct me if I'm wrong.....
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KiwiBlue2 added 22:47 - Feb 26 The player that I would like to see tried at 10 (while Delap is still here) is Hurst. He would provide more punch to our attack and keep defenders busy and could set up Delap. Nothing to lose if we tried him through to the end of the season......
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Treacle added 22:51 - Feb 26 Poor game management by players & manager in the second half. Another golden opportunity wasted. So frustrating we did not dominate the 2nd half. Came out with the wrong attitude & no urgency. We are not using our better players because we try to justify over priced new players. We need #Team Ipswich back!
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ItfcChingford added 22:51 - Feb 26 2 up front
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Leejames99 added 22:52 - Feb 26 Team for cup - Walton Tunazabe Woolfeden Burgess Davis Morsy Luongo Taylor Chaplin Broadhead Hirst Sell all the new signings and let's get back to league one asap, the club is doomed, lets get back to the comfort blanket team and see if Ian Holloway free. Fans want progression but with league one players and think 120 million should give you Prem status, some Prem players get paid nealy that a month. Opinions is one thing but living in past but complaining about the future is ridiculous, 2 seasons we had a narrow win at MK Don's now some are moaning we didnt beat MANCHESTER UNITED with league one players who got drubbed by Maidstone at home!

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Carberry added 22:53 - Feb 26 Good idea KiwiBlue2, however the chances of McKenna committing to a settled team is rarer than a home win.
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Carberry added 22:58 - Feb 26 Leejames99, Er, Walton is injured and I haven't heard of any Premier League players getting paid £30M a week. You've let yourself down there.
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ItfcChingford added 23:01 - Feb 26 Two upfront, show some passion, get the ball in the more than they do!
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jon_talbot56 added 23:01 - Feb 26 Lot of negative comments and while I understand the frustration maybe it’s time to take a step back. The first thing to say is the gap between the Championship and Prem is ever widening and hard to bridge for any team, let alone one which started the season with mostly ex League One players. Town have had to recruit in a hurry and try to integrate in a very short time. We are clearly not quite good enough but we are not terrible like poor old Saints and Blades last year. There are real signs of improvement. Jack Clarke is so much better, Omari never stops and Liam is always a handful. Cajuste is now lasting the whole game and Philogene is also getting better. Great to have Tuanzebe back at RB- at least the problems were not there tonight. Palmer is solid. I believe we will be too strong for other Championship teams next season and will have learned from this when we next get in the Prem. Enjoy this season for what it is and look forward to the next.

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aas1010 added 23:03 - Feb 26 Waste of a season . Could ave done better , not just this game but others brought wrong players wasted money left right and centre
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RobsonWark added 23:05 - Feb 26 Whatever happened to out motto "Running Towards Adversity"? It seems to be lost on these new bunch of players that we have signed since promotion from the Championship.
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warfarinman69 added 23:10 - Feb 26 Who was it said you can't win anything with kids. We have no experience in the front 4. Maguire has probably played more games than all of them combined in any division. That's why we're clueless. Perhaps it's a long term plan. But there is no excuse for not marking your man, even in zonal defence. Again our 3 behind Delap are too similar and too lightweight, although Omari's defensive work is improving. Write this season off and hope we keep Delap and Cajuste. We will be back.

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del45 added 23:12 - Feb 26 Why the hell do we leave il so late to bring on subs when you have lost the game at 2 3 and to bring on are best player to score in the 89th crazy.
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Northstandveteran added 23:13 - Feb 26 Trying to look for positives. Hoping that we now play our very best team in the F.A cup and our premier league opponents have other priorities. 5 year plan was it? Achieved in 2. Let's see this as a way too early practice run and return within the next season or two. But let's remember people. As difficult as this season has been, we still have a very astute, young manager who is going to learn so much from this experience.

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Leejames99 added 23:13 - Feb 26 @carberry I was being sarcastic that alot fans just want Chaplin and Broadhead and Hirst an no new signings. Yes I got math wrong but point I was trying make is 120, Million is nothing in terms of Premiership and considering we spent 0, 2, 2, 4 million in last 4 seasons and then 120 million shows the gulf when you think Haaland gets 2 million a month. We were and still are favourites to go down so I believe Mckenna bought the best players from Championship who are assets but he can develop to become a stable prem team. We can still do it and if we can scrape 4th bottom or Man City go down i think we will be an established Prem team and if we go down i think we will frighten other teams. Thanks heads up though i was watching tv and writing at same time

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SickParrot added 23:16 - Feb 26 Yet again we weren't good enough to take a great opportunity to win a game. Level at half time and with a man advantage for all the second half, we would not have a better chance to get a long overdue win. But no, Maguire is unchallenged at a corner (again) to put Utd in front and we never look like scoring. Our build up was slow and predictable, just passing from side to side to eventually put a poor cross in. Not many positives for Kieran to take from that performance. Our two goals were down to Utd errors, we couldn't handle Maguire at corners and it was an average Utd team who had 10 men for 45+ minutes but we still couldn't win. We just don't look like we're equipped to stay in this league and playing like that we don't deserve to.

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Gforce added 23:23 - Feb 26 @LeeJames.....Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was under the impression that if a club made a suitable bid for Delap, ie 60/70 million, then Man City would have matching rights on the deal,ie they can choose to match it or not ?
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OohArrPaulGoddard added 23:34 - Feb 26 Yes we spent a lot of money but our squad is still one of if not the weakest in the league. £20 million buys you Flynn Downes! Every premier league team other the 3 at the bottom have had years to prepare and build a team, event Saints and Leicester have loads of premier league experience.The only way a championship team stays up now is if an established team has a really bad season. I have enjoyed this season for what it is. It has been so much better than all those seasons when nothing ever happened. Going out of both cups early, just about surviving in the championship year after year not beating Norwich, watching pretty bad players trying to grind out a result week after week (Douglas really!). If we go down or stay up next season is still likely to be one of the better ones in this century so far.

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blueytops added 23:38 - Feb 26 We have all got to realise that football is a massive business opportunity for the owners to make some money, so like all businesses you make investments and let’s be honest that what the players are, they will have a resale value as not many players at this level remain with one club, who remembers the last time a player had a testimonial match for long service to one club? Therefore you have to realise that this season in the Premier league has been hugely successful off the pitch, the stadium has been refurbished, the training ground will be one of the best in the country so capital investment is being made, you add merchandise to this success story and the feel good factor in the town, the stadium is sold out every home game and the football club is on the up with tremendous support, read the article today in the Daily Mail to see how impressed journalists are with the support for the club.. So although we are disapointed at the results, which by the way is not a good look for the Premier League when in Successive seasons the 3 promoted clubs have been relegated, behind the scenes the club is in a really good position, so there’s a lot to be proud of at ITFC.. It’s just that we don’t see the bigger picture because we base success on football results and not what has been and is planned just by getting to the Premier league. Which incidentally is the most toughest league in the world, coupled with a profit on Delap and parachute payments together with a better EFL tv deal for next season the future is bright, and we should all be chuffed as nuts that we are all, despite some negative comments, proud to support the BLUE ARMY!

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Leejames99 added 23:42 - Feb 26 @Gforce Unfortunately not,as far as I know Man City have a buy back clause of 40 million so they could essentially do what Villa done with Philligene so buy him back for 40 million (we double money) then they sell him for say 70 million, reason being is he is from their Academy so it's good for their p&l same as Jaden was at Villa. Of course if Man City are relegatedim not sure if clause for that possibility as they would likely also get transfer embargo. If Man City didn't want to buy Delap back they also have a 20% sell on clause so either way Town would double their investment in him. I dont think Chelsea did that with Hutchinson.

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Gforce added 00:11 - Feb 27 Let's hope City don't go back in for him,that way we could still make a hefty profit of hopefully 40/50 million, even taking into account the 20% sell on clause.
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