The one man who got them the hopes of a top four finish in the last match against Watford was the very man today who seems to have crushed it. Juan Mata’s red card got United fans disappointed all across the globe. United who became ten men somehow kept a clean sheet till the 69th minute. But Jose Salomon Rondon finished a brilliant cross from the left wing to crush United’s hope a top four finish.
The match seemed to be a pretty average one. United, with 10 men still seemed to play better than The Baggies. They played better for the major part of the second half as well. Except for the moment when Jose Salomon Rondon scored the only goal of the game as West Bromwich defeated 10-man Manchester United 1-0, dealing a blow to the visitors’ top-four hopes.
It was United who next came closest to breaking the deadlock just after half-time, as Rashford’s low shot from the edge of the area deflected narrowly wide of Ben Foster’s left-hand post after a strong run from Anthony Martial, before Jesse Lingard clipped the top of the net with a looping drive from 25 yards. Berahino stabbed substitute Sebastien Pocognoli’s cross narrowly over the crossbar, but United failed to heed the warning as the full-back picked out Rondon in space just six yards out and the Venezuelan controlled the ball superbly before drilling low into the corner past De Gea in the 67th minute.
This is how we rated the Manchester United players after this match:-
1) David De Gea – 5/10
That shot from Rondon was so perfectly placed out of De Gea’s reach that the Spaniard’s full length dive couldn’t even get him a touch on the ball. Apart from that he didn’t have anything much to do in goal and had a pretty average day.
2) Matteo Darmian – 6/10
Darmain has a consistent problem of providing average crosses. So was the case in this match. He hardly got forward today and was almost never there to provide support for any overlaps. He however does a decent job in defence and did the same today as well. He has a knack of putting out a leg at an opponents run with the ball and did that successfully on 2 or three occasions today. He didn’t appear at all troubled in defence today.
3) Marcos Rojo – 5/10
Rojo was not his left back best today. He normally delivers a stellar performance whenever he is been asked to be a left full back. He did deal with the pace of Sessegnon, gave him very limited space on the flank, but it came at the expense of his attacking contributions. It was more of a tactical move by LVG post the red card that asked him to play more the role of a defensive full back then a fast attacking one that he normally plays.
4) Chris Smalling – 7/10
He was a force at the back and won every battle he found himself in. He made a number of crucial blocks and marked everything in front of him. Coming fresh out of injury, he actually produced a performance of a good quality centre back and was one of the only players who performed the best as per Van Gaal’s orders.
5) Micheal Carrick – 4.5/10
Looked way past his prime and couldn’t even give one decent through ball today. He needed to ask more of the Baggies defence with his passing. But he was unable to send any real threatening balls into attack. Being the captain it was his duty to marshal the midfield post Mata’s departure, but he was one of the weakest performers today.
6) Jesse Lingard – 5/10
Had a very decent first half and didn’t seem to be buzzed by the red card. He actually made quite a good number of runs in the opponent territory post the red card. But he became completely off in the second half. He showed flashes of his skill in attack in the first half, sending a few decent efforts at goal, but struggled to find any real consistency in the second half.
7) Daley Blind – 6/10
Was good for most part of the match and played an important role with United in possession, picking out some typical passes from the centre of the defence. He perfectly performed the role of a more ball playing centre back. He also did well to read the movements of Rondon and Berahino and marked them quite okay.
8) Ander Herrera – 4.5/10
Was absolutely absent today and failed to stamp his authority on the match in midfield. Everything about him was average today be it his passes, his free-kick or his runs. He was replaced just past the hour mark.
9) Juan Mata – 2/10
Absolutely poor today. The hero of last match was the villain of todays. Two stupid, needless bookings within a few minutes of each other saw him sent off after just 26 minutes. You don’t expect that from the man who was supposed to be the creative head in the field today.
10) Antony Martial – 6.5/10
He was the most consistent figure in attack for the visitors. He showed great skills on the ball, always looking to take on a defender, but needed to be a bit more clinical in the final third. He seemed completely helpless up at the front and needed someone fast to make those run-ins with him.
11) Marcus Rashford – 4.5/10
He started again as a striker and was pretty average, just like in his last match. He needed to play on the right wing and Martial up front like they did in the second half in the above said match. His dream start to his United career came crashing to a halt, as he saw little of the ball, and spent the majority of the match on the lines of being absent. Accordingly he was replaced for the final 15 minutes.
Substitutes
Morgan Schneiderlin – 4.5/10
Was nowhere near of the player he was in the last match. He struggled to make much of an impact in midfield following his introduction. Made a good sliding tackle and that was all about him today.
Memphis Depay – 5/10
He came on for the final 15 minutes and provided a few decent deliveries into the area. He was good with a few crosses but was very limited in possession and gave the ball away very easily.