Manchester United fluffed their lines yet again as they failed to convert a flurry of chances and dropped two points again a resolute Burnley side at Old Trafford. The home side hit a total of 37 shots, out of which, 11 were on target but Tom Heaton’s heroics coupled with some bad refereeing from Mark Clattenburg resulted in both sides keeping their respective clean sheets.
Here’s how each player fared in the match.
Manchester United
David de Gea – 6/10
The Spaniard had next to nothing to do in the game apart from a regulation save in the first half as United piled pressure on the Clarets.
Matteo Darmian – 6/10
The Italian’s first league start since May was not anything special. While he made many marauding runs down the flank, the crosses were not up to the mark. Though, he was unlucky that a foul from Flanagan on the edge of the box on him was waived off by the referee in the closing stages of the first half.
Marcos Rojo – 6/10
Rojo made it to the starting XI in the absence of Chris Smalling. The Argentine kept his cool at the back and was involved on the attacking front more than he was on the defensive.
Daley Blind – 7/10
The versatile Dutch defender was pretty good on the ball and helped in starting attacks from the back with his pin-point passes and brilliant positioning. His corners were well-taken as well, but all of it did not bear any fruit ultimately.
Luke Shaw – 7/10
The England international grew in stature with the match. Shaw made a brilliant slide tackle on Gray in the second half after Pogba’s ill-timed touch saw the forward through on goal. He played his part on the attacking front as well with his searing runs on the left flank.
Paul Pogba – 7.5/10
The Frenchman started the first half with some nervy touches and misplaced passes. However, he was incredible in the second half, being central to most of United attacks and gave his all to help his side get that elusive goal.
Ander Herrera – 5/10
Herrera was sent off after picking up his second yellow card in the 68th minute after having a more than a decent outing. Though he can be deemed unlucky as the foul due to which he picked up the second yellow was because he slipped and took down Marney in the process.
Jesse Lingard – 6/10
Lingard’s 50th United appearance was a mixed bag. While he showed flashes of brilliance and helped inject some pace in a rather slow side, the end product was not there.
Juan Mata – 8/10
Juan Mata’s link up play with Ibrahimovic was a treat to any United fan. His clever runs and accurate passes helped players around him look good. Mata even struck the post in the 66th minute with brilliant turning-half volley. He was taken off for Fellaini in the 73rd minute.
Marcus Rashford – 7/10
The youngster was lively for as long as he was on the pitch. Marauding down the left flank, Rashford produced some brilliant moments and created a lot of chances for his side, but, to no avail.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 7/10
Ibrahimovic’s link up play with fellow attackers was brilliant. The Swede saw a lot of the ball as he went back to help create moves for the side. He even hit the post couple of minutes after Mata did. However, he missed a gilt-edged opportunity in the dying embers of the match as he failed to flick a Pogba cross on the far post.
Substitutes
Marouane Fellaini – 5/10
Fellaini came on for Mata in the 73rd minute to provide that extra aerial option to his team.
Wayne Rooney – 6/10
The English captain came on for Lingard and was involved pretty heavily in the play. He could’ve done better to finish from the middle of the box after Blind found him from a brilliant set-piece routine.
Memphis Depay – N/A
Memphis came on for Rashford in the 82nd minute.
Burnley
Tom Heaton – 10/10
Heaton gave an absolutely out of the world performance as he kept making save after save after save. Initially, he reacted well to deny Ibrahimovic early on then a brilliant save of Lingard’s header in the latter stages of the first half. Then a flurry of ridiculous saves in the second half ensured that his side keeps the clean sheet. He did not put a foot, or a hand, or whatever, wrong in the match.
Matthew Lowton – 5/10
Lowton was troubled a lot on the right flank as the majority of United attacks came from his side. Especially Rashford created a lot of trouble for him, and he was unable to keep the youngster quiet.
Michael Keane – 7.5/10
Keane gave a calm and composed performance upon his return to his former club. While he made some good passes forward, he did not deter from his path while dealing with one of the best forwards in the game, Ibrahimovic.
Ben Mee – 7.5/10
Mee made a brilliant block to deny Ibrahimovic after some slick build-up play from United in the latter stages of the first half. He partnered up well with his fellow central defender and helped his side keep the clean sheet.
Stephen Ward – 6/10
Ward covered the Burnley left flank well for as long as he was on the pitch. He was taken off for Flanagan in the 44th minute after picking up a knock.
Scott Arfield – 6/10
Arfield was full of running and covered the entire length of the pitch. He was involved in both attacking and defending, the latter being the most prominent part.
Jeff Hendrick – 5.5/10
Not a very good performance from Hendrick, and was majorly forced to defend as United kept sending in waves after waves of attack.
Dean Marney – 6/10
Marney tried to place a couple of overhead passes to open the United defence when his side counter-attacked along with providing a shield to his back-line.
Johann Berg Gudmundsson – 6/10
Like his fellow midfielders, the Iceland international was made to defend. His corners and set-piece deliveries were decent but did not create much of an impact.
Andre Gray – 7/10
Gray was one of the better performers from his side as he injected pace and helped Vokes thrive during the initial stages of the match. He was taken off for Barnes in the 60th minute.
Sam Vokes – 5.5/10
Vokes, at times, fed off the pace of Gray but after the latter was taken off, he did not do much to pose a threat to the United goal.
Substitutes
John Flanagan – 5/10
Flanagan came on in the 44th minute for Stephen Ward and seemingly took down Darmian on the edge of the box. However, Clattenburg did not pay any heed to the penalty appeals from the home side. Rather unsurprisingly, Mourinho was sent to the stands by the fourth official before the start of the second half due to his over-zealous appeals for the spot-kick.
Ashley Barnes – 4/10
Barnes came on for Gray in the 60th minute of the match but didn’t do much.
George Boyd – N/A
Boyd came on for Gudmundsson in the 85th minute.
