Pogba scores twice, Man Utd crushes Van Persie's team

The Old Trafford team won 4-1 against Fenerbahce in the Europa League, on the day Van Persie returned to score at his old home.

Pogba (left) and Martial helped Man Utd score three goals in the first half. Photo: Reuters.

Goals: Pogba (penalty 31', 45'+1), Martial (penalty 34'), Lingard (48') - Van Persie (83')

The match at Old Trafford on the evening of October 20th saw Pogba and his teammates, representing the new generation of Man Utd, score a crushing victory over Fenerbahce, the team of the old face Van Persie.

In the match where Rooney returned to the starting lineup as a center forward, Man Utd did not create many chances until Fenerbahce gave away two silly penalties between the 31st and 34th minutes. First, Simon Kjaer fouled Mata to help Pogba open the scoring, and then Martial doubled the gap himself when he won a penalty after being pushed by Sener Ozbayrakli.

Having conceded two goals in four minutes, Fenerbahce were left scrambling and made another mistake to concede a third late in the first half, Pogba firing a one-touch effort from outside the box straight into the far corner after goalkeeper Demirel's desperate dive.

After the break, Fenerbahce had not yet recovered their spirits when they soon conceded a fourth goal in the 48th minute. Lingard finished with a dangerous diagonal shot from the edge of the 16m50 box to seal the match.

Van Persie returned and scored against Man Utd. Photo: Reuters.

Fenerbahce got a late consolation goal from Van Persie, who played a key role in Man Utd's last Premier League title in 2013. The Dutch striker dived in close to tap in Emenike's cross and the Old Trafford crowd, including former manager Alex Ferguson, stood up and applauded Van Persie for the goal.

A big win over Fenerbahce took Man Utd to the top of Group A with six points. Dutch side Feyenoord have the same six points but are second due to an inferior goal difference. Fenerbahce have dropped to third with four points while Zorya remain bottom with one point after losing 0-1 to Feyenoord last night.

Before the match with Fenerbahce, coach Mourinho announced that he would field a strong squad to welcome the Turkish opponent, despite having to play away at Chelsea on Sunday. The Portuguese strategist did not talk nonsense when he put in a squad full of key players, only missing the appearance of Ibrahimovic.

Replacing the Swedish striker was captain Wayne Rooney, who has been on the bench for all three of the last games. Rooney had fond memories of Fenerbahce when he scored a hat-trick against them on his Man Utd debut in Europe in 2004. After 12 years, Rooney's biggest mark in the last match was the assist for Lingard to score the fourth goal.

The once-famous striker duo Rooney - Van Persie are now on the other side of their careers. Photo: Reuters.

In addition, Rooney also showed his leadership and senior spirit when he authorized Pogba to take the penalty kick to open the score. This helped the world record contract to throw away the pressure and play comfortably in the remaining minutes, scoring another beautiful goal. Pogba is under a lot of pressure when Man Utd fans think he is a bad contract for the team because he has not made much of an impression in recent times.

Van Persie's return was also a memorable moment on a vibrant night at Old Trafford. The Dutch striker was chanted as he walked onto the pitch and received applause from the crowd despite scoring against the home team. More than a year after his departure, Van Persie is still remembered as a familiar face at Man Utd.

According to VNE