2018–19 Manchester United F.C. season
The 2018–19 season was Manchester United's 27th season in the Premier League and their 44th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. The season was the first since 2005–06 without club captain Michael Carrick, who retired after the 2017–18 season and joined the club's coaching staff. Assistant manager Rui Faria left the club at the conclusion of that season, with Carrick and Kieran McKenna replacing him as the club's first-team coaches.
A disappointing Premier League campaign saw the club finish in sixth place. United were also eliminated early in the EFL Cup, losing on penalties to Championship side Derby County in the third round. The club reached the quarter-final stage of both the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League, but were eliminated by Wolverhampton Wanderers and Barcelona respectively. This resulted in United's first consecutive trophyless seasons in 30 years. On 5 May 2019, following a draw at bottom-placed Huddersfield Town, United confirmed their place in the 2019–20 UEFA Europa League, making it the fourth time they had finished outside of the top four in the league since 2014.
On 18 December 2018, with just seven wins in the first 17 league games, manager José Mourinho was sacked. His last game, two days earlier, ended in a 3–1 defeat to Liverpool. The following day, former United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjær was appointed as caretaker manager until the end of the season, assisted by former coach Mike Phelan, who had left the club in 2013 following the retirement of Sir Alex Ferguson. On 28 March 2019, Solskjær became full-time manager.
Pre-season and friendlies
United preceded their 2018–19 campaign with a tour of the United States. The first three games were announced on 3 April 2018, with the opposition provided by Club América, San Jose Earthquakes and Liverpool. The club later announced that the tour would see them compete in the International Champions Cup. In the 2018 competition, United played against Milan at the StubHub Center in Carson, California, Liverpool at the Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and Real Madrid at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Alexis Sánchez's arrival in the United States was delayed as he was not issued with a visa due to the 16-month suspended jail sentence he accepted in February for tax fraud during his time in Spain. The final pre-season game saw Manchester United play away to Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena on 5 August.| Date | Opponents | H/A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
| 19 July 2018 | Club América | N | 1–1 | Mata 78' | 37,766 | |
| 22 July 2018 | San Jose Earthquakes | N | 0–0 | 32,549 | ||
| 25 July 2018 | Milan | N | 1–1 | Sánchez 12' | 21,742 | |
| 28 July 2018 | Liverpool | N | 1–4 | A. Pereira 31' | 101,254 | |
| 31 July 2018 | Real Madrid | N | 2–1 | Sánchez 18', Herrera 27' | 64,141 | |
| 5 August 2018 | Bayern Munich | A | 0–1 | 75,000 |
Premier League
Matches
The Premier League announced the fixtures for the 2018–19 season on 14 June 2018.| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | League position | |
| 10 August 2018 | Leicester City | H | 2–1 | Pogba 3', Shaw 83' | 74,439 | 7th | |
| 19 August 2018 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 2–3 | Lukaku 34', Pogba 90+5' | 30,592 | 9th | |
| 27 August 2018 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 0–3 | 74,400 | 13th | ||
| 2 September 2018 | Burnley | A | 2–0 | Lukaku 27', 44' | 21,525 | 10th | |
| 15 September 2018 | Watford | A | 2–1 | Lukaku 35', Smalling 38' | 20,537 | 8th | |
| 22 September 2018 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 1–1 | Fred 18' | 74,489 | 7th | |
| 29 September 2018 | West Ham United | A | 1–3 | Rashford 71' | 56,938 | 10th | |
| 6 October 2018 | Newcastle United | H | 3–2 | Mata 70', Martial 76', Sánchez 90' | 74,519 | 8th | |
| 20 October 2018 | Chelsea | A | 2–2 | Martial 55', 73' | 40,721 | 10th | |
| 28 October 2018 | Everton | H | 2–1 | Pogba 27', Martial 49' | 74,525 | 8th | |
| 3 November 2018 | Bournemouth | A | 2–1 | Martial 35', Rashford 90+2' | 10,792 | 7th | |
| 11 November 2018 | Manchester City | A | 1–3 | Martial 58' | 54,316 | 8th | |
| 24 November 2018 | Crystal Palace | H | 0–0 | 74,516 | 7th | ||
| 1 December 2018 | Southampton | A | 2–2 | Lukaku 33', Herrera 39' | 30,187 | 7th | |
| 5 December 2018 | Arsenal | H | 2–2 | Martial 30', Lingard 69' | 74,507 | 8th | |
| 8 December 2018 | Fulham | H | 4–1 | Young 13', Mata 28', Lukaku 42', Rashford 82' | 74,523 | 6th | |
| 16 December 2018 | Liverpool | A | 1–3 | Lingard 33' | 52,908 | 6th | |
| 22 December 2018 | Cardiff City | A | 5–1 | Rashford 3', Herrera 29', Martial 41', Lingard 57', 90' | 33,028 | 6th | |
| 26 December 2018 | Huddersfield Town | H | 3–1 | Matić 28', Pogba 64', 78' | 74,523 | 6th | |
| 30 December 2018 | Bournemouth | H | 4–1 | Pogba 5', 33', Rashford 45', Lukaku 72' | 74,556 | 6th | |
| 2 January 2019 | Newcastle United | A | 2–0 | Lukaku 64', Rashford 80' | 52,217 | 6th | |
| 13 January 2019 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–0 | Rashford 44' | 80,062 | 6th | |
| 19 January 2019 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 2–1 | Pogba 27', Rashford 42' | 74,532 | 6th | |
| 29 January 2019 | Burnley | H | 2–2 | Pogba 87', Lindelöf 90+2' | 74,529 | 6th | |
| 3 February 2019 | Leicester City | A | 1–0 | Rashford 9' | 32,148 | 5th | |
| 9 February 2019 | Fulham | A | 3–0 | Pogba 14', 65', Martial 23' | 25,001 | 4th | |
| 24 February 2019 | Liverpool | H | 0–0 | 74,519 | 5th | ||
| 27 February 2019 | Crystal Palace | A | 3–1 | Lukaku 33', 52', Young 83' | 25,754 | 5th | |
| 2 March 2019 | Southampton | H | 3–2 | A. Pereira 53', Lukaku 59', 88' | 74,459 | 4th | |
| 10 March 2019 | Arsenal | A | 0–2 | 60,000 | 5th | ||
| 30 March 2019 | Watford | H | 2–1 | Rashford 28', Martial 72' | 74,543 | 5th | |
| 2 April 2019 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 1–2 | McTominay 13' | 31,302 | 6th | |
| 13 April 2019 | West Ham United | H | 2–1 | Pogba 19', 80' | 74,478 | 6th | |
| 21 April 2019 | Everton | A | 0–4 | 39,395 | 6th | ||
| 24 April 2019 | Manchester City | H | 0–2 | 74,431 | 6th | ||
| 28 April 2019 | Chelsea | H | 1–1 | Mata 11' | 74,526 | 6th | |
| 5 May 2019 | Huddersfield Town | A | 1–1 | McTominay 8' | 24,263 | 6th | |
| 12 May 2019 | Cardiff City | H | 0–2 | 74,457 | 6th |
League table
FA Cup
As one of the 20 teams in the Premier League, Manchester United entered the FA Cup in the Third Round. The draw was made on 3 December 2018 and paired United with Reading, whom they had faced at the same stage two seasons earlier, when they won 4–0. United won the match 2–0; Juan Mata opened the scoring from the penalty spot after the video assistant referee ruled that Omar Richards had tripped Juan Mata in the penalty area, and another goal from Romelu Lukaku. 19-year-old winger Tahith Chong made his FA Cup debut, replacing Juan Mata in the 62nd minute. The draw for the Fourth Round was made on 7 January 2019 and United were drawn away to Arsenal; the last time the two sides had met in the FA Cup was in the Sixth Round of the 2014–15 season, when Arsenal won 2–1 at Old Trafford. This time Manchester United won 3–1; two goals in two minutes from former Arsenal forward Alexis Sánchez and Jesse Lingard put United 2–0 up with just over half an hour played, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang got one back for the Gunners shortly before half-time. Anthony Martial then came off the bench to seal the win for United with their third goal in the 82nd minute. The draw for the Fifth Round was made on 28 January 2019 and United were drawn away to Chelsea, whom they had faced in the final the previous season. Goals from Paul Pogba and Ander Herrera before half-time sealed a 2–0 win for United. They were then drawn away to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the quarter-finals. Goals from Raúl Jiménez and Diogo Jota gave Wolves a 2–1 win and a place in the semi-finals, with Marcus Rashford scoring a consolation goal for United in the 95th minute.| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
| 5 January 2019 | Round 3 | Reading | H | 2–0 | Mata 22', Lukaku 45+4' | 73,918 | |
| 25 January 2019 | Round 4 | Arsenal | A | 3–1 | Sánchez 31', Lingard 33', Martial 82' | 59,571 | |
| 18 February 2019 | Round 5 | Chelsea | A | 2–0 | Herrera 31', Pogba 45' | 40,562 | |
| 16 March 2019 | Quarter-finals | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 1–2 | Rashford 90+5' | 31,004 |
EFL Cup
The draw for the third round of the EFL Cup was made on 30 August 2018, with Manchester United drawn at home to Derby County. United took the lead just three minutes in through Juan Mata, but an equaliser from Harry Wilson was followed by a red card for United keeper Romero. Marriot gave Derby the lead with five minutes to go, but Marouane Fellaini`s stoppage-time strike ensured penalties; however Derby won 8-7 on spot kicks.| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
| 25 September 2018 | Round 3 | Derby County | H | 2–2 | Mata 3', Fellaini 90+5' | 55,227 |
UEFA Champions League
Group stage
The draw for the group stage of the 2018–19 UEFA Champions League was made in Monaco on 30 August 2018.| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | Group position | |
| 19 September 2018 | Young Boys | A | 3–0 | Pogba 35', 44', Martial 66' | 31,120 | 1st | |
| 2 October 2018 | Valencia | H | 0–0 | 73,569 | 2nd | ||
| 23 October 2018 | Juventus | H | 0–1 | 73,946 | 2nd | ||
| 7 November 2018 | Juventus | A | 2–1 | Mata 86', Bonucci 90' | 41,470 | 2nd | |
| 27 November 2018 | Young Boys | H | 1–0 | Fellaini 90+1' | 72,876 | 2nd | |
| 12 December 2018 | Valencia | A | 1–2 | Rashford 87' | 36,544 | 2nd |
Knockout phase
The draw for the round of 16 was held on 17 December 2018, 12:00 CET, at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland. After finishing second in their group and progressing to the round of 16, United were drawn against French champions Paris Saint-Germain in the first competitive meeting between the two sides. In the first leg at Old Trafford, goals from Presnel Kimpembe and Kylian Mbappé gave PSG a 2–0 lead to take back to the Parc des Princes. Needing to score three times to progress, Romelu Lukaku opened the scoring for United in the second minute of the second leg, before Juan Bernat restored PSG's two-goal aggregate lead less than 10 minutes later. Lukaku then scored again after half an hour, to bring United within a goal of the quarter-finals. Former Manchester United midfielder Ángel Di María had the ball in the back of the net early in the second half, only for the goal to be ruled out for offside, and Bernat hit the post late on after Mbappé had rounded David de Gea. In the 90th minute, referee Damir Skomina awarded United a penalty after using a VAR review to adjudge Kimpembe to have handled the ball in the penalty area. Marcus Rashford scored the spot-kick to make it 3–3 on aggregate and send United through to the quarter-finals on the away goals rule; this made them the first team in Champions League history to progress after losing by at least two goals at home in the first leg. Solskjær gave 17-year-old forward Mason Greenwood and 19-year-old winger Tahith Chong their European debuts, the former also playing his first senior game.The draw for the quarter-finals was held on 15 March 2019, with United paired with Barcelona. Both United and Manchester City were originally drawn to play their home legs in the same week; as United finished lower in the league the previous season, their tie was reversed. The first leg was played at Old Trafford on 10 April 2019. Barcelona won 1–0 thanks to an own goal by Luke Shaw that was originally ruled out for offside; the decision was later overturned after a VAR review. The second leg was played at Camp Nou on 16 April, with two goals from Lionel Messi and another from former Liverpool forward Philippe Coutinho giving the Spanish side a 3–0 win on the night, 4–0 on aggregate.
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A | Scorers | Attendance | |
| 12 February 2019 | Round of 16 First leg | Paris Saint-Germain | H | 0–2 | 74,054 | ||
| 6 March 2019 | Round of 16 Second leg | Paris Saint-Germain | A | 3–1 | Lukaku 2', 30', Rashford 90+4' | 47,441 | |
| 10 April 2019 | Quarter-finals First leg | Barcelona | H | 0–1 | 74,093 | ||
| 16 April 2019 | Quarter-finals Second leg | Barcelona | A | 0–3 | 96,708 |