Manchester United survived a significant FA Cup scare against Newport County thanks to Antony’s first goal of the season, which spurred a dramatic 4-2 win against the fourth-tier minnows on Sunday.
Erik ten Hag’s team faced an epic giant-killing after losing a two-goal lead at Rodney Parade.
Bruno Fernandes gave United the lead, while Kobbie Mainoo’s first goal for the club increased their advantage in the first half of the fourth-round match.
However, Bryn Morris pulled one back for Newport, who are presently 16th in League Two, before Will Evans stunned United with his second-half equaliser.
With United struggling, Antony proved to be an unlikely rescuer, scoring his first goal since April after a rough campaign hampered by poor form and domestic violence claims, which he denies.
Rasmus Hojlund scored in stoppage time to make the scoreline look even better for United.
United’s victory came on another difficult day for Ten Hag, who had to deal with allegations of a disagreement with Marcus Rashford.
Ten Hag, whose team is in seventh place in the Premier League and has been ousted from the Champions League, excused Rashford’s absence by stating he had “reported ill”.
However, rumors suggest the 26-year-old England forward was in a nightclub in Northern Ireland on Thursday evening, hours before failing to show up for training on Friday.
When asked explicitly about it, Ten Hag replied, “It’s an internal matter. “I’ll deal with it.”
RAUCOUS CROWD
All the ingredients for a shock were there, given United’s spluttering form this term and Newport’s past FA Cup heroics.
A raucous crowd, some waving homemade tinfoil FA Cups, crammed into the tiny, ramshackle stadium in the hope of witnessing history.
Temporary seating was added to accommodate demand for tickets, while enterprising fans climbed on scaffolding outside the ground to catch the action.
Newport memorably knocked Leicester out of the FA Cup in 2019, but initially, it seemed United would easily avoid becoming another victim of the FA Cup’s rich history of upsets.
ON THE ROPES
Ten Hag had taken no chances as he named a strong side featuring all United’s key players.
A flowing move produced United’s opener in the seventh minute as Luke Shaw’s pass was deftly flicked into Fernandes’ path by Antony and the Portugal midfielder finished with authority from the edge of the area.
Mainoo doubled United’s lead in the 13th minute, sweeping his shot into the far corner from 10 yards after Diogo Dalot picked out the young midfielder.
United looked set to win by a huge margin when Alejandro Garnacho sprinted onto Lisandro Martinez’s raking pass and lashed his shot off the crossbar.
But the underdogs reduced the deficit completely against the run of play in the 36th minute.
Morris pounced on a loose ball 25 yards from goal and smashed a superb volley that took a deflection off Martinez before looping past debutant keeper Altay Bayindir into the far corner.
United should have been out of sight by halftime but chances came and went, the most glaring when Nick Townsend plunged to his right to deny Fernandes.
In the 47th minute, Adam Lewis’ cross arrowed towards Evans and the forward got there just ahead of Raphael Varane, meeting it with a flick that deflected in off the United defender’s boot.
It was a dream come true for Evans, an ex-farmer and teacher who only two years ago was playing in the Welsh leagues.
United were on the ropes but Newport couldn’t deliver the knockout blow and Ten Hag’s men regained the lead in the 68th minute.
Shaw cleverly dragged the ball back to create space for a shot that cannoned off the post to Antony, who calmly slotted into the empty net.
To Ten Hag’s immense relief, Hojlund finished from close range after a goal-mouth scramble to end any chance of late embarrassment. (AFP)