Ten-man United bottle it at home as Okafor's heroic brace makes the difference

Consistency is the word that simply doesn't exist in Manchester United's dictionary.

Another Premier League night, and another disappointment for the Red Devils' fans, who witnessed a 2-1 home loss to Leeds United at Old Trafford, which has put their third place in the EPL table under serious threat.

On the other hand, this could prove to be the crucial triumph in Leeds' relegation battle, since they're now six points away from 18th-placed Tottenham.

Straight from the kick-off, it was obvious that Daniel Farke's men were eager to grab maybe crucial points in their relegation battle, right there, against the third-placed team at their mythical ground.

And what a start that was for the Yorkshire side!

Jayden Bogle put the cross in, and after Dominic Calvert-Lewin failed to hit it properly, it reached Noah Okafor for a routine first-time finish and shocking opener, just five minutes into the game, 0-1.

Instead of bouncing back as soon as possible, Carrick's men succumbed to despair, which proved costly, as the visitors were able to reap the dividends of their aggressive approach on United's back line at the half-hour mark.

The Red Devils' defenders were trying to clear that ball at least three times in the span of just ten seconds, but instead of actually doing so and doing it for good, the ball reached Okafor from just outside the box. He launched a proper missile which deflected off Leny Yoro and ended in the bottom corner, 0-2.

Ao Tanaka was inches away from making it 3-0 near the end of the first half following Yoro's mistake and his slalom through the box. However, Lisandro Martinez's goal-line clearance saved United in the very last second.

At that point, it seemed like Leeds are on the verge of making history, as they've never scored three at Old Trafford in the top flight. But the drama was yet to come...

It actually went from bad to worse for the hosts after the break, as that same Martinez was controversially sent off for pulling Calvert-Lewin's hair. They did pull and push each other, but it seemed that the decision, made after a VAR review, was maybe a bit too harsh.

Ten-man United were forced to continue this mission impossible, but that was the moment they finally woke up.

They pegged one back through Casemiro, who headed it home from Bruno Fernandes' deep cross to the back post. We suddenly got that game back on.

Carrick subbed on Mbeumo to put some more pressure on the Leeds' back line, and the Cameroonian came close to equalising just a few minutes after coming on.

Calvert-Lewin replied the same way on the other end, as Lammens stopped his close-range header, just like his counterpart did with Benjamin Sesko's effort shortly after. The game was slowly descending into a pure, undistilled chaos, with chances coming and going almost repeatedly, but it stayed 1-2 on the scoreboard.

ENGLAND PREMIER LEAGUE ROUND 32

Friday

West Ham - Wolverhampton 4-0 (1-0)

/Mavropanos 42, 83, Castellanos 66, 68/

Saturday

Arsenal - Bournemouth 1-2 (1-1)

/Gyokeres 35 pen - Kroupi 17, Scott 74/

Brentford - Everton 2-2 (1-1)

/Thiago 3 pen, 76 - Beto 26, Dewsburry-Hall 90+1/

Burnley - Brighton 0-2 (0-1)

/Wieffer 43, 89/

Liverpool - Fulham 2-0 (2-0)

/Ngumoha 36, Salah 40/

Sunday

Crystal Palace - Newcastle 2-1 (0-1)

/Mateta 80, 90+4 pen - Osula 43/

Nottingham Forest - Aston Villa 1-1 (1-1)

/Williams 38 - Murillo 23 og/

Sunderland - Tottenham 1-0 (0-0)

/Mukiele 61/

Chelsea - Manchester City 0-3 (0-0)

/O'Reilly 51, Guehi 57, Doku 68/

Monday

Manchester United - Leeds United 1-2 (0-2)

/Casemiro 69 - Okafor 5, 29/