Noam Emeran, who is eligible to play for Rwanda, scored for Manchester United in a 2-0 victory over Leeds in Oslo as the Reds got their pre-season tour underway.
Emeran’s mother is Rwandan and his father from Guadeloupe played for Rwanda between 2005 and 2007.
The build up to kick-off was emotionally charged as the clubs put their historic rivalry to one side to pay tribute to the late Gordon McQueen, a legend of both, following his untimely death last month at the age of just 70 after suffering with dementia since 2021. Captains Raphael Varane and Liam Cooper each donned special shirts bearing McQueen’s name and number five during the pre-match formalities, while there was also a minute’s applause in his honour.
Ten Hag’s United dominated the early stages, with Amad Diallo sharp from the start and Kobbie Mainoo patrolling the base of the midfield like a seasoned pro. There was also a bright unofficial debut from Mason Mount, who was involved in two early chances.
The former Chelsea star began a move that saw Hannibal Mejbri force a top save from Kristoffer Klaesson from the centre of the box, having released the speedy Amad down the right flank. Mount then picked the pocket of Leeds defender Jeremiah Chilokoa-Mullen and floated a lobbed effort that just landed on the roof of the net, with Klaesson back-pedalling.
Leeds hadn’t really done much in an attacking sense for the first 18 minutes until a swift counter attack put a chance on a plate for Ian Poveda, only to see Hannibal come flying back at him. Daniel Farke’s team grew with confidence and continued to pose a threat on the break, although Tom Heaton was only called into proper action once before the break.
At the other end, United continued to make chances without testing Klaesson again. A better touch from false nine Jadon Sancho after Hannibal’s interception and layoff could have provided the breakthrough, while full-back Alvaro Fernandez missed the target with a close-ranger header at a corner. A couple of jinking runs from Amad also asked questions but didn’t yield a shot on target.
Both managers sent out entirely different teams in the second half, with Ten hag handing the honour of the United captaincy to 20-year-old midfielder Charlie Savage. With the game then effectively starting with 22 new players on the pitch, it was a slow start to the second half as both sides took time to find their feet and get into some sort of rhythm.
Hugill threatened at the hour mark when he chased a through ball, only to see replacement Leeds goalkeeper Dani van den Heuvel dive at his feet and beat him to it. But it wasn’t long after that Emeran broke the deadlock with a composed finish, opening up his body to fire low across goal after being played in by Isak Hansen-Aaroen when the Norwegian had won the ball in the Leeds half.
17-year-old Archie Gray gave the Leeds fans in the stadium a reason to get off their feet when his powerful drive from just outside the box rippled the side netting just the wrong side of the post.
But Hugill’s goal just inside the final 10 minutes looked to seal things. Emeran turned provider this time, advancing down the right, cutting back and finding his striker with a clever reverse pass with his left. Hugill could hardly miss, sweeping the ball in with assured confidence.
