Manchester United enjoyed on of the most memorable games in FA Cup history as Anthony Martial’s dramatic last minute winner sent his team into the finals of the competition. David De Gea was once again the hero in defence as he saved Lukaku’s penalty in the 57th minute.
Marouane Fellaini had given them the lead but a Chris Smalling own goal in the 75th minute levelled things up for Everton. But it would be Louis Van Gaal’s day as the most expensive teenager in British history scored with a composed finish to cap a classic game of football.
Here’s how the players managers and pundits reacted after the game
Louis Van Gaal
Van Gaal has been often criticized by media and the fans alike but he has temporarily silenced his doubters after that win. The manager has a chance to win his first silverware with United and he was very happy after the result.
Speaking to manutd.com he said, “It’s fantastic when you see the joy in the eyes of the players. But also for the fans, because I think we deserved to reach the final. We were the better team in the first half and had so many chances - we could have finished it much earlier. It was an exciting game for the neutral fans and we are lucky that we scored in the last minute, but we deserved to win”
Chris Smalling’s own goal might have ruined the game for him but Van Gaal forgave the player despite his error. “I told [Chris] Smalling he was a lucky guy because now we can smile! He played a very good match. Both teams showed a lot of passion and will to win, so I’m very happy that we were the winners. “
Van Gaal praised Martial’s goal but said can still improve. “He could have scored in the first half when he was in the same situation, so I told him at half-time to shoot low into the corner – and he did that! It was a fantastic finish. I think he can do much better [in the future] because I see a lot of things that he can still improve and he shall improve.”
The Dutchman didn’t forget to mention David De Gea’s contribution. “Yesterday we had an exercise with penalties. 20 penalties we have taken - Sergio Romero saved one and David De Gea zero. But today was the most important!”
“I like it very much because as a player, manager and staff member, you do everything to win a title and we are very close now.”, he added
Roberto Martinez
Roberto Martinez was distraught after the game. The manager will have a lot of tough questions to answer from the board. After his side were demolished by Liverpool in midweek they will finish the season empty handed. Here’s what he had to say:
“The feeling we share now is that this is as cruel as football can be. I thought it was a terrific game but it took us 45 minutes to get into our rhythm, although then we showed a strong mentality to stay in the game and we created the best two chances.”
“In the second half, I thought we built up incredible tempo and intensity to impose ourselves on the game but at the end the whole story becomes very heartbreaking.”
United players praise De Gea
De Gea produced another sparkling performance in a United shirt and saved a crucial penalty as well. His teammates lauded the goalkeeper’s performance.
Captain Wayne Rooney gave De Gea the ultimate compliment Speaking to manutd.com he said, “It was a great penalty save The pace with which the ball was hit shows he has a strong arm on him, and Everton had momentum behind them at that time. He’s the main reason why we’ve got to this final.”
Michael Carrick also joined in, praising the keeper as one of the best in the game “I don’t think it was a bad penalty, but David was sensational today – how many times have we said that over the last few years? He’s kept us in the game again; it’s almost what we’ve come to expect from him. Hopefully he can have quieter games between now and the end of the season.”
Twitter Reactions:
Several players and pundits took to twitter as well to express their opinion about the game.
