Starting wide in a fluid attacking front three with fellow homegrown products Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard, the England Under-18 international was unable to convert two early aerial chances and later had a deflected shot tipped onto a post by Neil Etheridge. He also hit the side-netting with his left foot from a Rashford pass. Before the match was out, Greenwood took his tally to seven shots, four of which were on target, and was inches away from converting a late chance in the middle after darting into the danger zone. He made 21 sprints, more than anybody else, although it was only one in front of Rashford's total.<doc-sep>Manchester United youngster Mason Greenwood is the only player in today’s team escaping criticism from many of the club’s furious fans on Twitter right now. The Red Devils are 1-0 down at home to an already-relegated Cardiff City side, and the worrying thing is it’s no fluke. United have been dire in recent times, winning just twice in their last eleven games in all competitions, with some fans surely starting to question if the club jumped the gun by hiring Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager on a permanent basis after that fast start as caretaker boss. MUFC look like heading towards another dire result this afternoon, with only Greenwood getting praise as the 17-year-old makes his full Premier League debut. An exciting talent whose shone at youth level, Greenwood seems to be making the most of this opportunity – which is more than can be said of the rest of the side Solskjaer’s put out. Here’s some of the Man Utd reaction to the first half… Greenwood the only one looking like doing anything — caolan (@caolancrampsie) May 12, 2019 Wtf United playing!!! Apart from Greenwood, 10 dead woods there on the pitch! No grip, no intense, no finishing nothing!! This is sickening ffs!!! @ManUtd #MUNCAR — Devaraj7 (@D3v4raj) May 12, 2019 Greenwood is the only positive — Maverick Schlosser (@mav_schlosser) May 12, 2019 The fact that Greenwood, a 17 year old academy graduate, is @ManUtd's best player, says everything you need to know about the current crop of "senior" players in the squad. #MUFC — Kresan (@kresann) May 12, 2019 HT: United 0-1 Cardiff Nothing going forward apart from Greenwood Never a penalty Phil Jones May aswell just let them run through #MUFC — United, Basically (@unitedbasically) May 12, 2019 Greenwood the only positive speaks volumes — RyanMUFC (@OlesWheel) May 12, 2019 HT 1-0 Greenwood the only one performing so far — Yusuf (@XtremezDon) May 12, 2019 Greenwood is already better than Lukaku — Claudio (@C_Salvaggio) May 12, 2019<doc-sep>Man United have named a near full-strength side to take on Cardiff City at Old Trafford this afternoon, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side look to go out on a high this season. United don’t really have much to play for given the fact that they can no longer qualify for the Champions League this season, thus it’s understandable to see why Solskjaer has named the team that he has. Youngster Mason Greenwood has been handed a start by the Norwegian for today’s clash against Cardiff, meaning that he’s now become the youngest ever player to start a Premier League game for the club. ? Mason Greenwood becomes the youngest player to start a PL game for Man Utd 17 yrs, 223 days – Mason Greenwood 17 yrs, 253 days – Federico Macheda 18 yrs, 21 days – Phil Neville 18 yrs, 99 days – Timothy Fosu-Mensah 18 yrs, 127 days – Marcus Rashford pic.twitter.com/SXej6Lkypw — Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) May 12, 2019 The likes of Paul Pogba, Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard have also been handed starts by Solskjaer for today’s clash, as the Red Devils look to give their fans something to cheer about heading into the summer break. James Garner and Angel Gomes have been named on the bench by Solskjaer, and we can surely expect to see one of them get a few minutes of game time at least during the match today. The full line-up can be seen below. Any surprises you see in there? Let us know down below.<doc-sep>
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer heaped praise on Mason Greenwood for his impressive home debut on a Sunday afternoon with few positives for Manchester United. The Red Devils ended the Premier League season with a disappointing 2-0 loss to relegated Cardiff City at Old Trafford. Solskjaer opted to hand Greenwood his first Premier League start alongside Marcus Rashford and Jesse Lingard for the visit of the Bluebirds. The 17-year-old had seven shots on goal but the exciting youth prospect was unable to convert a chance to score a vital goal for the home side. Greenwood made 21 sprints during the Premier League clash, which was more than any other Manchester United player on Sunday afternoon. Only Lingard and Paul Pogba touched the ball more times than Greenwood, who also completed three dribbles and won three tackles. Speaking at his post-match media conference on a day of few positives for the Manchester United boss, Solskjaer singled out Greenwood’s performance for praise. “It’s so disappointing again, but then again the facts and reality are we created chances,” Solskjaer said. “Mason was absolutely brilliant, got the crowd going, got the players going, but that’s a 17-year-old making his full debut and he’s the bright light.” Solskjaer added: “He was our best player by a mile. He came into the team with a lack of confidence and you can see that has take a total. Not surprised by his performance, we know he is capable of that.” Greenwood was named the Manchester United young player of the year earlier this month following his excellent performances at youth level this term. The striker made his competitive debut as a 87th minute substitute for Ashley Young in a 3–1 win against Paris Saint Germain in the Champions League back in March. Greenwood is the second youngest player to represent the club in a European competition and the youngest ever in the Champions League era at 17 years and 156 days. MORE: Latest Manchester United news and views MORE: Football transfer rumours and gossip