Lakshay Khurana
Manchester United continue to march on after thumping Everton in the FA Cup semi-finals. A dramatic win at Wembley has delighted the club and the fans, hoping for a chance to win a trophy in this disappointing season. Louis van Gaal might just get himself stuck on the manager seat for one another year if Manchester United wins the FA Cup.
A smooth finish by Marouane Fellaini against his former club helped United take a lead and come out to the top in domination. Everton however, worked hard and started to gain more and more possession which lead to the continuous attacks, where Chris Smalling got panicked and made a wrong touch on the ball, putting the ball into his own net towards the end of the second half.
With both the teams tied at 1-1, Anthony Martial stepped up to score a stunning goal from Herrera’s pass.
Here’s how the players performed.
David De Gea: 9
De Gea did awesomely well at the penalty from Lukaku, denying Everton an early lead. A sloppy bit and an extra touch which almost cost United a goal takes away a point from the perfect performance the Spaniard had with his heroics saves.
Marcos Rojo: 6
All-in-all a better display by the Argentine compared to his recent ones. Was not able to mark Deulofeu though.
Dailey Blind: 7
Blind had a decent game. He kept check on Lukaku and Barkley for most of the match. Never lost his concentration.
Chris Smalling: 5
Struggled too mark the threatening Lukaku. Smalling linked up pretty well with Carrick and Blind. His own goal gave his performance a bad name.
Timothy Fosu-Mensah: 6
A powerful game by the youngster as usual. Silly decision to give away the penalty.
Michael Carrick: 6
Carrick found it difficult to get into the game on many occasions but always made himself available in the centre of the midfield.
Marouane Fellaini: 8
A brilliant game by the Belgian midfielder. Fellaini was everywhere on the pitch. Scored the first goal for United and did well in the defence including a match-saving interception on Lukaku’s attempt minutes after Smalling’s own goal.
Jesse Lingard: 7
Lingard worked hard throughout the game. Was always on the run. Missed a chance to net the ball in the first half.
Wayne Rooney: 9
The skipper silenced the critics with a breathtaking performance. The goal-line clearance and the continuous on-the-spot passes made him a very important player against the Toffees.
Anthony Martial: 9
The man of the match. Anthony Martial had a great game and showed his worth. His repeated frightening runs from the left flanks shook Everton almost every time. Assisted the first goal and scored the second one.
Marcus Rashford: 6
His pace caused Everton problems but was handled well in the second-half. Rashford had a rather quite day.
Substitutes:
Antonio Valencia : 7 (for Fosu-Mensah, 61′)
Did well on the defence as his last match. Boosted the game from the right flank.
Andre Herrera: 5 ( for Fellaini, 87′)
Didn’t play much but set-up the second goal and brought down Ross Barkley.
