Sir Jim Ratcliffe got a first-hand view of Manchester United transfer priority at Fulham
None of those Manchester United fans travelling back up the M6 late on a Sunday night would have been bothered, but this was a game of football that got the goal it deserved.
Lisandro Martinez is starting to develop into an attacking weapon for United, and his proactiveness in winning possession ahead of Rodrigo Muniz and intent to drive forward was impressive, but his left-footed shot took a wicked deflection off Sasa Lukic and gave Bernd Leno no chance.
As the ball hit the back of the net via Leno's palm and the crossbar, Martinez ran straight to an away end that deserved that moment more than the players wearing red. Premier League wins have been hard to come by for United this season, and the eighth of a disappointing campaign deserved to be celebrated.
READ MORE: I saw Rasmus Hojlund reaction that showed Manchester United don't always play to his strengths
But it cannot cloud United's judgement over the final eight days of the winter transfer window. Business will be done by 11pm next Monday, and it could be a defining week in this season. Sir Jim Ratcliffe was at Craven Cottage to witness a United win that did little to paper over the cracks. He should have left knowing the chequebook needs to be opened.
United continue to push for Lecce left wing-back Patrick Dorgu, but an attacking reinforcement is required as well. That will be even more important if they go through with the sale of Alejandro Garnacho, who is of interest to Napoli and Chelsea and could fund a late shopping spree.
Garnacho again showed moments of class at Craven Cottage, although he didn't hit the heights he showed against Rangers. Nobody on that pitch whose job it is to score or create goals will look back fondly on the game. That will be especially true for Rasmus Hojlund, for whom this victory would have been bittersweet.
Hojlund has played international football with Fulham centre-back Joachim Andersen, and it felt telling that Andersen kept coming up against Hojlund, almost as if he had told Calvin Bassey that he would handle United's No.9.
When the ball is played into the striker's feet, he can make a battle of it. He can hold the ball up well, but his biggest issue in those situations is waiting for the support, which can be too slow to arrive. At Sporting, Viktor Gyokeres would run the channels or get in behind to offer his side an out-ball. Hojlund struggles to do that but is also denied the space to do it or the support to make it a worthwhile tactic.
However, there is no escaping from the fact that the record of United's strikers is desperate. Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee cost up to £108million across the last two summers, but neither looks remotely like being the answer.
Zirkzee scored on his debut against Fulham on the season's opening weekend but has failed to score in 30 of his 32 appearances since then. Hojlund has failed to find the back of the net in 23 of his 28 appearances.
This is a wretched record for strikers at a club like United, and they cannot get away from that. When Hojlund starts, it leaves supporters pining for Zirkzee, and when Zirkzee starts, it is Hojlund's stock that rises.
Hojlund spent just under an hour on the pitch at Craven Cottage before Amorim felt he had little option but to act, sending Zirkzee on in his place. Hojlund, signed for an initial £64m from Atalanta, is going through a major crisis of confidence at Old Trafford, and he struggled to link up with his teammates on Sunday night.
He was far from alone in offering little threat. United had one shot in the first half, an effort that just hit Matthijs de Ligt and dribbled safely into the arms of Leno. They found it difficult to get their brightest attacking talents - Amad and Garnacho - into the game.
Garnacho was the one who threatened to make something happen. One run from the left touchline created space and an overlap for Noussair Mazraoui, who couldn't find a final ball.
The first half left you thinking the game couldn't get any worse. And then the second half kicked off. It took more than 25 minutes of the half for either team to touch the ball in the opposition penalty area. Then Martinez strode forward, tried his luck from an increasingly regular angle and saw the dice fall for him.
United can't rely on their centre-back scoring every week, but right now it looks more likely than a centre-forward scoring. That has to change over the next week.
