Manchester United teen Mason Greenwood builds strike rate

Man Utd's Mason Greenwood volleys to score against AZ Alkmaar. Pic/AFP

Manchester: Teenager Mason Greenwood, 18, again grabbed his chances for Manchester United, scoring twice in a 4-0 thrashing of AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League on Thursday. Earlier, Arsenal came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 at Standard Liege and also make sure of a place in the last 32 as Group F winners. With Wolves, who crushed Besiktas 4-0, also advancing, English clubs ended with a full house in Europe with the three Europa League entries following the Premier League's four champions League teams into the knockout rounds.

Youthful United

At Old Trafford, in a battle for top spot in Group L, Alkmaar matched a youthful United side until the 53rd minute when veteran Ashley Young smashed the home team ahead. Greenwood pounced on a loose ball to snap the second into the corner of the net. After Greenwood was fouled, Juan Mata converted a penalty. Then, the Spaniard set up Greenwood for another crisp low left-footer inside the post.

The brace ensured Greenwood became Manchester United's second-leading scorer in the current season with six goals. He is second only to prolific striker Marcus Rashford, who has 13 goal this season. However, interestingly, Greenwood has achieved success after starting in only six games, having been brought on by boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as a substitute.

Solskjaer was all praise for his teen star. "He's different class as a finisher. In and around the box you'd expect him to take a shot and hit it on target. He is so precise in his finishing. It's good how he creates space for himself," Solskjaer told BT Sport Solskjaer was immediately asked about the possibility of drawing parallels with another famous Man United star, Wayne Rooney, who had marked his Champions league debut as an 18-year-old at Trafford with a hat-trick against Fenerbahce.

However, the manager refused to acknowledge any comparison. "No, no. He is a different type of player, Mason than Wazza, but he must have enjoyed tonight. The thing is with Mason, he's just going to look forward to Sunday tomorrow - he's not going to rest on his laurels," Solskjaer concluded.

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