Manchester United just about held on for a 2-1 win over Everton at Old Trafford. The Red Devils looked comfortable in a 2-0 lead thanks to Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial.
However, Chris Smalling gave away a needless penalty kick which brought Everton back into the game. The Red Devils had a number of chances to kill the game but failed to do so.
Everton huffed and puffed but could not get that second goal. This was a much-needed win for Jose Mourinho after their 2-2 draw against Chelsea.
There were some decent performances at Old Trafford, and here are the player ratings from the game.
David de Gea – 7/10
De Gea couldn’t do much to stop Gylfi Sigurdsson’s penalty but had a decent outing in between the sticks.
Ashley Young – 7/10
The Englishman had a decent game as he did his defensive duties well for United.
Chris Smalling – 5.5/10
We have no idea what he was thinking giving away a needless penalty away. Fortunately, it didn’t cost us the three points.
Victor Lindelof – 7/10
Lindelof was the better defender on the night but again, we are comparing him with Smalling.
Luke Shaw – 6.5/10
The Englishman didn’t have a great game as he was constantly troubled by the Everton wide-men.
Nemanja Matic – 6.5/10
Matic was another player that wasn’t at his best in the game but did a decent enough job in the middle of the park.
Paul Pogba – 6.5/10
The Frenchman took 11.5 seconds to convert the penalty for the first goal and some of his passing wasn’t great. He was lucky with the penalty, as Jordan Pickford’s save came back at him to score.
Fred – 7/10
This was a much better display from Fred as he passed the ball around well.
Juan Mata – 7/10
The Spaniard did a good job at the start of the game, but his passing and movement were off in the last 20 minutes or so.
Anthony Martial – 8/10
Martial was excellent in the game as he won us a penalty and scored a brilliant goal to give us a 2-0 lead. He should have made it 3-1 late on in the game but failed to beat Pickford.
Marcus Rashford – 5.5/10
Rashford started in place of Lukaku but wasn’t great in the game and replaced in the second half.
Substitutes
Romelu Lukaku – 5/10
Lukaku had a number of chances to make the right run or pass but failed almost every time.
Ander Herrera – NA
The Spaniard came on to replace the hard-working Mata.
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Jesse Lingard – NA
Barely had time to do anything in the game.