Manchester United put the brakes on their dismal start to the season with a 2-0 win at Burnley, but a second-half red card for Marcus Rashford put a bit of a damper on a crucial victory for Jose Mourinho’s team at Turf Moor.
Rashford, a second-half replacement for Alexis Sanchez, was sent off by referee Jon Moss after 10 minutes on the pitch following a head-butt on former United defender Phil Bardsley.
The England forward will now serve a three-match ban for violent conduct, forcing him out of the forthcoming games against Watford, Wolves and the EFL Cup clash against Derby.
United were already 2-0 ahead against Sean Dyche’s team following two first-half goals from Romelu Lukaku, who missed further opportunities in the second half to complete a hat trick.
A penalty miss by Paul Pogba — Burnley goalkeeper Joe Hart saved the Frenchman’s 69th minute spot kick — denied United an even greater victory, but aside from Rashford’s moment of madness, this was a positive performance for the visitors.
United were impressive from the start, taking the game to a Burnley team who looked fatigued from their midweek Europa League exit against Olympiakos.
And they should have won by a far greater margin, with Hart making a series of important saves to keep the score down.
But after ending a run of two successive defeats, United will now hope to have kick-started their season as they attempt to catch the top four.
With a trip to surprisingly unbeaten Watford.
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