Manchester United suffered their fourth Premier League defeat in five games when Bruno Fernandes was sent off in a 2-0 defeat to resurgent Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Fernandes received his marching orders at the start of the second half in the foggy Molineux Stadium, where Matheus Cunha shot straight into the goal from a corner just before the hour mark.

Cunha then fed Hwang Hee-chan to secure the points late in stoppage time.

Thursday’s result marks a victorious home debut for new Wolves coach Vitor Pereira, who overtook fellow Portuguese Ruben Amorim.

With two wins from two under Pereira, Wolves moved – at least temporarily – to 17th, three places behind out-of-form United.

How the game developed

Apart from an early half-time chance for Fernandes, Wolves had the upper hand in the first half, forcing Andre Onana to make his first notable save when he tipped over Jorgen Strand Larsen’s header.

Nelson Semedo went close before half-time with a deflected long-range shot and Wolves were given a huge boost less than two minutes after the restart when the full-back was on the receiving end of a rash foul from Fernandes. United’s talisman received his second yellow card, with VAR heeding the referee’s request.

A moment later, Semedo was in the thick of things again when he headed in a cross for Larsen, but Wolves’ celebration was interrupted by the offside flag – the VAR confirmed this decision.

But there was no such reprieve for United in the 58th minute as Cunha curled a right-footed corner into the far corner across their bodies in a crowded penalty area.

Another Larsen goal was ruled out for offside, but the result was decided in the ninth minute of stoppage time. Cunha fended off the counterattack and passed to substitute Hwang, who scored his first league goal of the season.

Lightning strikes twice

It is rare for a team to concede a goal straight after a corner. It is almost unusual for a team to concede two such goals in three games.

But that’s exactly what happened when Cunha swung his corner into Onana’s net to give Wolves the lead, just a week after Son Heung-min did the same for Tottenham in United’s defeat to Ange Postecoglou’s team in the EFL Cup .

His side’s vulnerability from set pieces will be a concern for Amorim, as will their reaction following the sacking of their captain Fernandes.

Fernandes protested his innocence but he left his right foot on Semedo as he stretched to meet a loose touch on the edge of Wolves’ penalty area, leaving referee Tony Harrington no choice but to hand out a second yellow card.

Having lost their playmaker, United ceded territory to Wolves and, having gone behind, lacked the penetration to respond. The best they managed were hopeful headers from Alejandro Garnacho and Harry Maguire.

United might have been given a lifeline before Wolves’ second goal as VAR looked for a possible foul in the hosts’ penalty area, but no on-field review was needed as the Red Devils’ poor form continued with discouraging games against Newcastle United and Liverpool are coming up.

Pereira’s perfect start

Two wins and two clean sheets from his first two Premier League games are all Pereira could have hoped for after taking over at Molineux, where the gloom that prevailed at the end of Gary O’Neil’s tenure has finally dissipated.

Their victory was largely thanks to Cunha. Perhaps his opening goal could be described as a fluke, but the strike and precision the Brazilian applied to his corner was reminiscent of Son’s a week ago.

Cunha then capped a superb individual performance with that assist for Hwang, meaning he has now been involved in 11 goals in his last 10 league games, and Pereira will know he is ensuring the former Atlético Madrid attacker continues this form while also ensuring Wolves stay tight at the back and could be key to getting his new team out of danger.

However, the question of a possible ban remains for Cunha, who faces charges from the FA over his actions following Wolves’ defeat to Ipswich Town.

However, Pereira has made a sensational start and with struggling Spurs next up, the new coach will undoubtedly have a good chance of maintaining his 100 percent record.

Next PL games

Compare facts

Ruben Amorim is the first Man Utd manager to lose five of his first ten games in charge of the club in all competitions since Walter Crickmer in January 1932 (6/10).

Vitor Pereira is the first Wolves coach since Sammy Chung in August 1977 to win his first two games as a top flight coach, while he is the second Portuguese coach after Jose Mourinho to win his first two games as a Premier League coach has.

No team has conceded more goals from corners in the Premier League this season than Man Utd (9 – level with Wolves). In fact, it is the second goal the Red Devils have conceded directly from a corner in the competition, after Junior Stanislas for Bournemouth in December 2015.

Matheus Cunha has scored in each of his last three Premier League games for Wolves, with only Henri Camara in April 2004 having been with the club longer in the history of the competition (5 games).