Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Bruno Lage claimed the key to beating Manchester United was easily visible from his spot in the Old Trafford technical area.
Joao Moutinho’s strike in the last ten minutes earned Wolves their first away victory against the Red Devils since 1980, piling the pressure on interim boss Ralf Rangnick.
The German had actually gone five games unbeaten to kick off his stint in the dugout, but the manner of performances led many to believe this result was on the way.
And while the visitors were made to wait for their winning goal, it was a dominant performance which included a record-breaking 15 shots during the opening 45 minutes.
United came back into it somewhat after the break, with Bruno Fernandes striking the bar and Cristiano Ronaldo seeing a goal ruled out for offside.
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But in truth, had United managed to get anything more than a point, it would have been a case of daylight robbery after being very much second best.
Wolves’ midfield duo of Ruben Neves and Moutinho ran the show in the middle of the park, while Lage’s team enjoyed great success on both flanks.
And speaking after he masterminded the famous victory – in just over 60 seconds – Lage eloquently explained how Wolves exploited the spaces afforded by Rangnick’s 4-2-2-2 formation, the shape he has employed since replacing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer last year.
“The most important thing for us is to see where the full-backs are,” the Wolves boss told Sky Sports. “To find the spaces, when they are defending and when they are attacking, to see where they are.
“If you look in the first half, when they are defending and trying to block – I saw it from the bench – they have [Edinson] Cavani trying to block Ruben, Cristiano Ronaldo trying to control [Conor] Coady and the wingers inside.
“So the space is outside. That’s why Semedo and Marcal had a lot of chances and a lot of ball in the first half and the boys found those spaces.
“That’s why it’s so important when you have the ball to know where the space is and when they are defending, if Trincao and Podence understand that if the full-backs are in front of them or, if they go, it is not your man, so control the space inside.
“That’s why it was so important that we work hard on these questions, the players understood the plan and we deserved the three points.”
Meanwhile Rangnick, who has come in for criticism for his tactical approach, said he is still trying to discover the right sort of balance.
“We didn’t press at all. We tried but we were not able to get into those pressing situations. They had an overload in midfield and they played via their wing-backs,” he explained.
“As I said, it’s always a question of balance, how do you need to create chances offensively and how compact do you have to be to defend your own goal?
“And this is what it’s all about. Finding the best possible players for the formation and hoping every player plays in his best possible position.”
Wolves boss Bruno Lage needed just one minute to decimate Ralf Rangnick’s Man Utd plan
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