de Gea - 7, Clean sheet and some good saves. One moment of bother in each half but nothing came of either. Smalling - 8, Quaity, even out of position he continues to show amazing ability. Jones - 7.5, Great debut tonight. Brilliant tackle in the second half aswell. Evans - 7.5, Much better from Evans. Evra - 6.5, Still lacking in his game. We all know he is better than hes playing. Nani - 7, Good crosses throughout and always a danger. Not at his best though. Cleverley - 8 Very good second half and almost got a goal in the first. Anderson - 9 ( MOTM ) Second half he was a beast. GOAL MACHINE! Young - 7.5, good running all game, always looked dangerous. Rooney - 8, Always looking to score and was duly rewarded thanks to Giggs. Great game. Welbeck - 8.5, Looks the business at times and tonight was one of those times. First half was probably a 5/10 but second half was top class. Great goal and assist for the lad. SUBS: Giggs - 7, come on, get record, make assist, job done! Hernandez - 6, Didnt do much but good to see back. Park - 6.5, almost scored and was solid as usual. de Gea Smalling Jones Evans Evra Nani Cleverley Anderson Young Rooney Welbeck SUBS: Giggs Hernandez Park
I agree with most of the assessments/ratings except for one, for me Jones was excellent and should be rated higher than Cleverley (not that he had a bad game), I actually had Jones down as my man of the match, he made a couple of great blocks, he stepped up to make interceptions and challenges at the right times and even broke forward with the ball a couple of times.
I'd agree entirely... except I'd swap Rooney and Welbeck's rating. Danny looked a bit out of sorts in the first half. Took the goal to get his swagger on and from that looked really lively. Anderson would be my MOTM too. He is such a clever player too, I think that aspect has never really been touched upon as well. Knows his defensive side had to go up a notch just to cover for Cleverley's inexperience with that respect and knew just when to push on. I don't think I've ever seen him been knocked off the ball, just how strong is he!?
de Gea 7 clean sheet, nuff said Smalling 8 looks class. sometimes awkward going forward but he is a CB Evans 7.5 shaken off the bad form of last year Jones 8 looks worth every penny and that crazy run where he went full length was awesome Evra 7 looked off, probably still recovering Nani 7 not at the high of last season, but good solid game Cleverley 7.5 seems to have started controlling play, still is sometimes a half-second to slow in decision making Anderson 8 looks like he is emerging as a good player. And a goal, they're getting frequent Young 8 good game. don't know why he doesn't take all the corners? Rooney 8 oozes class, and hair Welbeck 7 good goal and assist, but play seems to pass him by at times don't think we saw enough from the bench
I've just noticed something. Most of us would give Nani 7, or even a 7.5 out of 10. 18 months ago, Jan 2009 before that Arsenal game, this is what we all wanted. We knew he could have the 9 out of 10 game, but we all wanted him to have a 7 out of 10 game even when he didn't get a goal or an assist. Just shows how far Nani has come.
de Gea 6 (some nervous moments) Smalling 9 (outstanding young defender) Jones 8 Evans 7 Evra 7 Nani 6 Anderson 9 (looks fitter and sharper) Cleverly 8 (gets better as the match progresses) Welbeck 7 (goal brought him to life) Rooney 8 (seems energised by having pacey youngsters around him) Young 7 (tended to delay on the ball too much)
that said, if he gets a 4 out of 10 next game he'll still look inconsistent, but worse. If he plays well for the next few games, he'll shake the 'inconsistent tag'
I don't think it's fair to label him inconsistant anymore. I think he is fine player now and needs to work on his passing. He should take a leaf out of Young's and Valencia's book and see how they can play centrally because they are good passers of the ball. It's the confidence factor. Not sure what left back they'll have (Gibbs?) but whoever he is, is going to have their hands full.
Quick thank you to you guys. Spurs are at the bottom of the table. I never thought i'd be so happy to see united win.
i thought anderson was good in the first half and exellent in the second half.he covered alot of ground,made good tackles,blocks and interceptions. he got the ball forwards quickly.his passing was crisp especially in the second half.he had a good shot saved and scored a good goal. he's starting to add goals to his game which is good to see. he is very physically strong which is why saf seems to want him to play the more defensive role in midfield. unfortunatly for anderson and cleverley.when fletcher and carrick are fully fit both ando and cleverley will play less often.
Hi Saints fan here, who watched an enjoyable game. I think Jones was your outstanding player. I think Smalling is your biggest prospect but with Jones and De Gea comfortable with the ball your team is going to get stronger. Just don't let Stuart Pearce ruin Cleverley, he always seems to play poorly for England under 21!
Hi guys, Not a United fan (a QPR fan infact) but a fan of attractive football. Must say that after watching the game yesterday, especially the second half, your boys were a joy to watch. The passing football that only Arsenal have been renowned for up until now in the PL, acombined with the clinical finishing that United are already known for made for a fantastic spectacle. Couldnt believe the stat about it being the 2nd youngest United team to ever start a prem league game. The players looked so assured and comfortable with the ball. Was good to see the emergance of some real English talent, will be great news for all English fans. Also good to see Anderson in a more forward role, he was class at Lisbon in that role and will no doubt flourish with Uniteds new style of play. Good luck for the season (Except against us of course) think you guys will be the team to beat once again.
