By Peter Hall
MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) – A rousing second-half display from Manchester United earned the hosts a thrilling 4-2 victory over Aston Villa in the EFL Cup third round on Thursday.
After a uneventful first half, the game sprang to life just after the break as Ollie Watkins clipped Villa into the lead, before the hosts went straight down the other end to level through Anthony Martial.
The chances kept coming and Villa retook the lead after Diogo Dalot inadvertently diverted the ball into his own net, only for United to quickly equalise again, Marcus Rashford applying the finish.
The game opened up as it approached the latter stages and Bruno Fernandes, played in by substitute Alejandro Garnacho, put United ahead with a shot, off the back of Villa defender Tyrone Mings, 12 minutes from time.
Scott McTominay added a late fourth for United to put the seal on a exhilarating win over Villa who beat them 3-1 in the Premier League on Sunday.
(Reporting by Peter Hall, editing by Ed Osmond)
