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Football News: Wilfried Gnonto breaks Premier League record in Manchester United draw

The goal scored by Wilfried Gnonto in Wednesday night's 2-2 draw vs Man United breaks Premier League scoring record. The West Yorkshire team arrived at Old Trafford without a win in their previous seven Premier League games.

Moreover, Leeds were without their manager Jesse Marsch, who was fired on Monday. However, the visitors got off to a strong start and broke the deadlock after only 55 seconds.

Gnonto linked with Patrick Bamford before launching a beautiful shot from outside the penalty area into the bottom-left corner. Thereafter, Raphael Varane's own goal barely three minutes after the break gave Leeds a two-goal lead.

This happened for the first time that The Peacocks had 2-goal cushion at Old Trafford since February 1974. Man United rallied in the dying minutes, though, as goals from Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho levelled the scoreline.

While Edin Dzeko's 43-second goal for Manchester City in March 2014 holds the record for the earliest Premier League goal ever. But Gnonto still managed to make history with his first goal for Leeds United.

The Italian international did become the youngest foreign player to score a Premier League goal against Man United at Old Trafford (19 years &95 days).

Gnonto, a former Inter Milan youth player, joined Leeds from FC Zurich in Switzerland last summer. Marsch immediately promoted him to the senior team, and towards the end of October, he made his Premier League debut.

This season, the forward has made a total of 13 first-team appearances across all competitions, making a total of four goals and one assist.

Following the game, Gnonto and the rest of his team received high praise from co-caretaker boss Michael Skubala, who told BBC Match of the Day:

"He's a superb player. He's a superb talent and a great person to work with but I thought everyone put their shift in and played out the gameplan."

"Willy did his shift but there were some strong defensive performances too. The fans and the club should be proud."

A draw at Old Trafford helped Leeds move up one spot to 16th in the standings, only one point above the relegation zone, despite the fact that they are yet to win a game in the league since November 5.

On Sunday, the Whites will host Man United at Elland Road for their next game, but it is unclear if Skubala, Paco Gallardo, and Chris Armas will continue to serve as first team coaches.

After meeting with potential candidates for the managerial position, sporting director Victor Orta is said to have returned from Madrid. Rayo Vallecano's Andoni Iraola is now the new betting favourite to succeed Marsch after initial top target Carlos Corberan decided to sign a new contract with West Bromwich Albion on Tuesday.

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  • Released : 09-Feb-2023

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