Manchester United are as vulnerable now as they have been in close to 30 years, but the news obviously hasn’t reached Shrewsbury. After Stamford Bridge on Sunday, this was another horrid anti-climax of an FA Cup tie, the underdogs playing as if they had everything to lose
Micky Mellon’s team didn’t threaten, didn’t risk, didn’t even countenance the type of high tempo, harum-scarum game that can unnerve a Premier League team in this competition. Instead, Shrewsbury sat back and invited United to do their worst. The consequences of that are hardly as terrifying as they used to be, but the outcome was predictable enough.
Manchester United breezed through, two goals to the good before half-time, three up on the hour, playing the last 15 minutes out with ten men, due to injury. If Shrewsbury’s plan was to sneak the draw and head to Old Trafford for the pot of gold, it was poorly conceived and inadequately executed. Manchester United could front load without risk and needed no second invitation.
Juan Mata curled a delightful free-kick into the net just before half-time. The Spaniard left Jayson Leutwiler stranded on the spot although some United players- Jesse Lingard, Anthony Martial and Ander Herrera- looked to be in an offside position.
His players were not wonderful, but they did not need to be. Competent would do and by the end, the very idea that this could have been Van Gaal’s Waterloo appeared laughable. Shrewsbury were the lowest ranked team in the last 16 and played like it. It was an anti-climax for the neutrals at home but the best of all possible worlds for United, who have a far greater test against Midtjylland in the Europa League to come on Thursday.