Manchester United draws 2-2 against Burnley
Manchester United suffered their second consecutive setback in the Premier League on Tuesday, drawing 2-2 against Burnley at Old Trafford on Boxing Day thanks to a last-minute goal by Jesse Lingard, who scored a brace.
With this new draw, the fourth of the season, the team led by Portuguese coach José Mourinho remains in second place and is now twelve points behind the leader, Manchester City, who will play at Newcastle's stadium on Wednesday and could open a 15-point gap.
In addition, they are only one point behind Chelsea, who beat Brighton with goals from the Spaniards Álvaro Morata and Marcos Alonso.
Burnley took just three minutes to open the scoring. Ashley Barnes resolved a scramble from close range after a free kick from the left by Icelandic player Johann Gudmundsson.
The 0-2 came in the 35th minute and was the work of Belgian Steven Defour, who brilliantly converted a direct free kick that sneaked into the top right corner of the goal defended by Spanish goalkeeper David de Gea.
United reduced the gap in the 53rd minute with a goal by Jesse Lingard from a cross shot from the edge of the small area, the first touch after a pass from the right by Ashley Young.
And Lingard himself, in added time, achieved the equalizer by taking advantage of a loose ball inside Burnley's penalty area after a free kick taken by Spanish player Juan Mata.
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Manchester United vs Burnley | Lineups
Manchester United: David de Gea; Antonio Valencia, Chris Smalling, Phil Jones, Luke Shaw; Juan Mata, Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard, Paul Pogba; Romelu Lukaku and Anthony Martial.
Burnley: To be confirmed.
Manchester United vs Burnley | Preview
The traditional 'boxing day' marks the start of the second half of the Premier League, the twentieth matchday of the competition, dominated by Manchester City.
This time it comes on a Tuesday, with eight of the ten matches of the twentieth round and a clear path for Manchester City to aim for the title. Guardiola's team already has a thirteen-point lead over second-placed Manchester United, and a sixteen-point lead over third-placed Chelsea. Liverpool and Tottenham are further behind, twenty and twenty-one points respectively.
The immediate goal for Manchester United and Chelsea is to secure the second position, which they both missed in the previous matchday benefiting Manchester City. United is hosting Burnley.
Manchester United, who will face Sevilla in the Champions League, hosts Burnley at Old Trafford aiming to get back to winning ways after the draw against Leicester, which equalized in added time and frustrated the Reds.
The boxing day is one of the special days in the English competition. While most of the leagues on the European continent come to a halt, the Premier League intensifies its schedule. December 26th is a festival for the tournament, which has absorbed a tradition born among the nobility and their employees in the Middle Ages.