Anthony Martial has scored eight goals in 14 Premier League appearances for Manchester United this season
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got off to a perfect start as Manchester United's interim manager with a 5-1 thrashing of his former club Cardiff.
The former United striker succeeded Jose Mourinho, who was sacked in midweek, and got his first win courtesy of a performance that will encourage United fans as some of their more marginalised talent came to the fore in a performance full of attacking intent.
Marcus Rashford's stunning free-kick, a deflected effort from Ander Herrera and a fabulous team goal by Anthony Martial effectively won the contest before half-time for a United side inspired by the recalled Paul Pogba, who had a hand in all three first-half goals.
Victor Camarasa's penalty briefly gave Cardiff hope as they reduced the arrears to 2-1, but Jesse Lingard won and scored a contentious second-half penalty and then rounded Neil Etheridge to tap into an empty net at the death to make the result safe.
It is the first time United have scored five goals in a Premier League game since legendary manager Sir Alex Ferguson's last game in charge - a 5-5 draw with West Brom in May 2013.
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Relive United's win over Cardiff
Watch: 'Solskjaer can't fail'
All eyes were on Solskjaer's first selection as United boss, with Pogba included in the starting line-up.
The World Cup winner and club-record signing has been a forlorn-looking substitute for the past three Premier League matches, but returned to a more attack-minded United starting XI.
Pogba was joined by French forward Martial, who made his 100th Premier League appearance, with Romelu Lukaku away on compassionate leave.
Luke Shaw and Phil Jones returned to a United defence that had conceded 29 goals already this term - their worst record since 1962 - with Solskjaer making four changes in total for his first game.
Pogba was involved in the thick of the action inside three minutes, winning a free-kick from Aron Gunnarsson that would give the Norwegian the perfect start to life in the United dugout, Rashford brilliantly finding the bottom corner.
Solskjaer was punching the air in delight with less than four minutes on the clock.
The contest proved an ideal opportunity for Pogba to send a message on the pitch rather than on social media and he certainly appeared less inhibited as the visitors passed with a good tempo and closed down effectively.
United were superior throughout the first period and it was no surprise when they doubled their advantage just before the half-hour mark when Pogba picked out Herrera, whose speculative effort nicked off Greg Cunningham and gave Neil Etheridge no chance.
However, United's defensive fragility reappeared before the interval, with Rashford handballing carelessly when he moved his upper arm towards the ball under little pressure and Camarasa slammed home the penalty.
But in the end, United made light work of a Cardiff side, who had won their last four home games, with attacking flair throughout.
Solskjaer's return intrigues both sets of supporters
New Manchester United caretaker boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge of Cardiff when they were relegated in the 2013-14 seasonThere was a keen sense of intrigue among both sets of supporters about the presence of Solskjaer in the United dugout.
The former United striker's appointment as Mourinho's temporary successor caused raised eyebrows in South Wales after his disappointing spell managing the Bluebirds in 2014, which included a relegation from the Premier League.
Solskjaer, 45, is contracted to return to his role as manager at Norwegian club Molde next summer, but Cardiff supporters remember him for a disastrous nine-month spell in charge in the Welsh capital as he returned to the club 1,556 days after his dismissal.
Solskjaer scored 126 goals in 366 appearances during his 11 years at Old Trafford and is best remembered for scoring the winner in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich in 1999, along with collecting six Premier League titles.
The sense of goodwill from United's travelling supporters towards the man they called the 'Baby-faced Assassin' was obvious - they chanted about their temporary boss from well before kick-off and gave him a rapturous reception when the sides emerged at the Cardiff City Stadium.
Before the game Cardiff boss Warnock had said Solskjaer "could not lose" in his new position and the former striker was keen to get his messages across, moving to the edge of his technical area several times to deliver advice and encourage his team to find more width.
He would have felt slightly unsettled when Cardiff reduced the arrears to 2-1, but a fine team move a minute later saw Martial exchange passes with Pogba and Lingard and fire past Etheridge to give United deserved daylight at the interval.
Cardiff's fine run at home comes to an end
The Bluebirds had won four of their last five Premier League home games, yet the omens were not good for a side chasing a first victory over United in 58 years.
Boss Neil Warnock has failed to beat United in any of his previous seven encounters and, with a two-goal deficit at half-time, that never looked like changing.
United dominated at the start of the second half and Lingard's penalty killed the contest, with United close to adding further goals through Rashford, Phil Jones and Pogba, before Lingard did add the fifth after keeping his composure when clean through to round Etheridge and slot home.
Man of the match - Paul Pogba
The recalled United midfielder was at the heart of everything, dominating Cardiff and creating chances for his side in a performance his former boss might not have enjoyed. "Caption this."'Football is easy with good plays' - What they said
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: "Football is easy if you've got good players! They are a great bunch of players and their quality is unbelievable.
"I arrived on Wednesday night and only had Thursday and Friday with the players. Wayne Rooney texted me and gave me some advice - so it must be down to him! He told me to make them play football, enjoy themselves and be Manchester United.
"The foundation was in the defending. I thought the two centre-backs and two full-backs were brilliant."
Cardiff manager Neil Warnock: "If you'd told me at the start of this season that we'd be out of the bottom three at Christmas I'd have snapped your hand off.
"We've got two big games coming up [at Crystal Palace and Leicester]. We know we need to improve our away form. I wasn't disappointed in the effort, it was just misdirected at times.
"At half-time I still thought we had a chance. I thought if we get the next goal we might get something. It's very disappointing."
What's next?
Cardiff travel to Crystal Palace on Wednesday, December 26 (15:00 GMT), while Manchester United take on Huddersfield at Old Trafford (15:00).
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Line-ups
Match Stats
Live Text
Line-ups
Cardiff
1Etheridge
5Ecuele Manga
4Morrison
22Bamba
18CunninghamBooked at 79mins
17GunnarssonBooked at 58minsSubstituted forRallsat 83'minutes
33HoilettSubstituted forK Harrisat 74'minutes
21Camarasa
7ArterSubstituted forZohoreat 61'minutes
11Murphy
13Paterson
2Peltier
8Ralls
10Zohore
12Smithies
14Reid
19Mendez-Laing
23K Harris
Man Utd
1De Gea
18Young
2Lindelöf
4Jones
23ShawBooked at 35mins
21Herrera
31MaticSubstituted forFellainiat 87'minutes
6Pogba
14Lingard
10RashfordSubstituted forFredat 79'minutes
11MartialSubstituted forPereiraat 87'minutes
3Bailly
8Mata
15Pereira
17Fred
20Dalot
22Romero
27Fellaini
Referee:
Michael Oliver
Attendance:
33,028
Match Stats
Home TeamCardiffAway TeamMan Utd
Possession
Home26%
Away74%
Shots
Home9
Away17
Shots on Target
Home3
Away9
Corners
Home4
Away7
Fouls
Home13
Away13
Live Text
Posted at
Match ends, Cardiff City 1, Manchester United 5.Full TimePosted at 90'+4'
Second Half ends, Cardiff City 1, Manchester United 5.
Goal!Posted at 90'
Goal! Cardiff City 1, Manchester United 5. Jesse Lingard (Manchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Paul Pogba with a through ball.Posted at 88'
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by Victor Lindelöf.SubstitutionPosted at 87'
Substitution, Manchester United. Marouane Fellaini replaces Nemanja Matic.SubstitutionPosted at 87'
Substitution, Manchester United. Andreas Pereira replaces Anthony Martial.Posted at 83'
Paul Pogba (Manchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.Posted at 83'
Foul by Joe Ralls (Cardiff City).SubstitutionPosted at 83'
Substitution, Cardiff City. Joe Ralls replaces Aron Gunnarsson.Posted at 80'
Offside, Cardiff City. Greg Cunningham tries a through ball, but Josh Murphy is caught offside.Posted at 80'
Foul by Anthony Martial (Manchester United).Posted at 80'
Sol Bamba (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.SubstitutionPosted at 79'
Substitution, Manchester United. Fred replaces Marcus Rashford.BookingPosted at 79'
Greg Cunningham (Cardiff City) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.Posted at 78'
Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.Posted at 78'
Foul by Greg Cunningham (Cardiff City).Posted at 77'
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by David De Gea.Posted at 77'
Attempt saved. Kenneth Zohore (Cardiff City) left footed shot from a difficult angle on the left is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Josh Murphy.Posted at 75'
Attempt blocked. Kenneth Zohore (Cardiff City) left footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked. Assisted by Greg Cunningham.Posted at 74'
Foul by Marcus Rashford (Manchester United).Posted at 74'
Greg Cunningham (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.Posted at 74'
Attempt missed. Sol Bamba (Cardiff City) header from the right side of the six yard box is close, but misses to the right. Assisted by Víctor Camarasa with a cross following a set piece situation.SubstitutionPosted at 74'
Substitution, Cardiff City. Kadeem Harris replaces David Junior Hoilett.Posted at 73'
Foul by Victor Lindelöf (Manchester United).Posted at 73'
Kenneth Zohore (Cardiff City) wins a free kick on the left wing.Posted at 71'
Attempt missed. Callum Paterson (Cardiff City) header from the centre of the box misses to the right. Assisted by Kenneth Zohore with a cross.Posted at 71'
Attempt saved. Phil Jones (Manchester United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.Posted at 70'
Corner, Manchester United. Conceded by Neil Etheridge.Posted at 70'
Attempt saved. Paul Pogba (Manchester United) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Anthony Martial.Posted at 69'
Attempt missed. Callum Paterson (Cardiff City) header from the centre of the box is too high. Assisted by Víctor Camarasa with a cross following a set piece situation.Posted at 69'
Foul by Paul Pogba (Manchester United).Posted at 69'
David Junior Hoilett (Cardiff City) wins a free kick on the right wing.Posted at 67'
Foul by Marcus Rashford (Manchester United).Posted at 67'
Greg Cunningham (Cardiff City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.Posted at 66'
Luke Shaw (Manchester United) wins a free kick on the left wing.Posted at 66'
Foul by David Junior Hoilett (Cardiff City).Posted at 65'
Attempt missed. Sol Bamba (Cardiff City) header from the centre of the box misses to the left. Assisted by Víctor Camarasa with a cross following a corner.Posted at 65'
Corner, Cardiff City. Conceded by David De Gea.Posted at 65'
Attempt saved. Josh Murphy (Cardiff City) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.Posted at 63'
Attempt missed. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) right footed shot from the right side of the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Victor Lindelöf with a through ball.
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Source: bbc.com
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