2
Manchester United travelled to Lithuania on Wednesday night for the first time as the u19s took on FK Zalgiris in the UEFA Youth League.
United controlled the proceedings from the off, with wingers Ashton Missin and Ethan Williams delivering some dangerous crosses early on.
Jaydan Kamason’s cross, though, would find the head of Gabriele Biancheri to head home and give United the lead just after the half-hour mark.
With a home crowd of over 4,000, Zalgiris had the support behind them. They remained resolute in defence to keep it 0-1 going into the break.
The floodgates opened after the restart, though, with Ethan Williams doubling the lead five minutes into the second half. Godwill Kukonki charged down the left wing before finding Ethan Williams inside to shoot, which was deflected past the keeper.
Just three minutes later, Williams’ shot was blocked into the path of Biancheri to finish from a tight angle.
Williams then added his second of the match with some magic as his shot dipped and swerved into the top right corner from 25 yards out.
Into the 90th minute, Zalgiris pulled one back when they broke into the box on the left side and a powerful strike beat Will Murdock at his near post.
United restored their four-goal advantage shortly after James Scanlon drove home the loose ball in the box.
Incredibly, it wasn’t over there, though; the home side added another in the dying seconds with a firm strike into the roof of the net from the left side of the box.
The win sees United take a 5-2 lead going into the return fixture in Manchester in two weeks.
United: Murdock, Kamason, Jackson, Fredricson, Kukonki, Devaney (McAllister 61), Fitzgerald (Baumann 75), Missin (Scanlon 61), J. Fletcher (Lacey 67), Williams, Biancheri (Musa 67).
Unused subs: Byrne-Hughes, Armer, Munro, T. Fletcher