Manchester United
David De Gea – 6/10
He was involved in a collision with Smalling which gave Ighalo a chance to score which he didn’t take early on. The Spaniard produced a brilliant save to deny Deeney in the first half but should have done better with Capoue’s goal after getting a leg to it.
Luke Shaw – 7/10
Shaw was pretty much steady in defence though did not contribute much in attack. He displayed the abundance of pace he had on occasions and was sacrificed in the 2nd half as United chased the game.
Chris Smalling – 5/10
First start of the season was an extremely poor one for Chris Smalling as he failed to deal with the physicality of Deeney and Ighalo. He was involved in a mix-up with De Gea that should have seen Ighalo score.
Eric Bailly – 5/10
The Ivorian put in his worst display in a United shirt tonight. He flew into ill-advised challenges and was often caught out of position. Bailly badly needs to improve his decision-making.
Antonio Valencia – 7/10
Valencia, as always, was a willing runner for United down the right wing though his deliveries could be far far better. He was replaced in the 2nd half as Mourinho looked for more attacking options.
Marouane Fellaini – 6/10
The big Belgian was steady in his role as deepest midfielder and did his primary job to an extent. He lacked the poise and vision to influence a game outright and ended up conceding a penalty late on.
Paul Pogba – 6/10
It was a much-improved performance from the most expensive player in the world after the midweek Feyenoord game. He thumped a vicious shot against the crossbar in the 1st half and saw a lot of the ball. But he could not make a telling contribution in the final third. He has to improve a lot to justify his price tag.
Anthony Martial – 5/10
A forgettable 38 minutes for the mercurial Frenchman. He was involved in a head-on collision with Janmaat and looked dazed for a bit. Subsequently, he lost the ball in a dangerous area which led to Watford’s first goal.
Wayne Rooney – 6/10
A forgettable first half display from the United captain as he struggled to make his mark as part of a midfield 3. He looked off the pace and lost the ball on numerous occasions. Though Rooney grew into the game in the 2nd half, his set piece deliveries left a lot to be desired.
Marcus Rashford – 7/10
Rashford was probably United’s best player on the night, belying his tender years. He was quick, direct and skilful with his running and deservedly got the equaliser.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 6/10
Zlatan did well in linking up with Rashford for United’s equaliser and saw a goal-bound header saved by Gomes. But the Swede missed 2 sitters by his standards in the first half which he should have converted.
Substitutes
Ashley Young – 6/10
He was brought on for Martial in the 1st half. Young’s work rate could not be faulted but he lacked that decisive quality to make a difference in such games. This was not a compelling display from him by any means.
Juan Mata – 6/10
Mata was brought on for Valencia past the hour mark but failed dismally to impact the match.
Memphis Depay – N/A
The Dutchman came on late as United chased an equaliser. He had little chance to impact the game but managed to pick up a booking.
