Manchester United moved up a place to fifth as Anthony Martial’s 54th-minute strike gave the home side a 1-0 victory over Everton in a game which will be remembered for Old Trafford’s South Stand being named in the honour of Sir Bobby Charlton.
Everton did have a couple of good chances which fell to Phil Jagielka but he could not make them count as United moved to within a point of Manchester City.
Here are the ratings for the players from the match:
Manchester United
David de Gea – 7.5
The Spanish goalkeeper didn’t have much work to do on Sunday. He beat Romelu Lukaku to a vital clearance after Smalling had slipped and instinctively palmed away Phil Jagielka's shot from eight yards out in the second half.
Matteo Darmian – 7.5
The ex-Torino man was effective on both sides of the flank (right back in the first half and left-back in the second half). He made delightful approaches across the bye-line and defensively kept Gerard Deulofeu at bay in the second half.
Daley Blind – 8.5
What a fantastic performance by Netherlands’ latest captain! He shut all doors for Romelu Lukaku with his terrific reading of the game. Despite being inferior in terms of physique and pace, his ability to anticipate the Belgian’s next movements helped his cause immensely.
Chris Smalling – 7
It was a solid performance from England’s centre-half. Despite slipping on one occasion - forcing David de Gea to clear up with Romelu Lukaku approaching – he maintained his composure for pretty much the entire game. He, along with Blind, were influential in impeding the service to Lukaku.
Marcos Rojo – 6
Unfortunately, it was a day to forget for the Argentine. He was getting constantly beaten by Gerard Deulofeu on the left wing. He was hauled off at half-time.
Morgan Schneiderlin – 6.5
The French midfielder was slightly erratic in his distribution but did well to keep Ross Barkley quiet as far as ball retrieval was concerned.
Michael Carrick – 6
It was an off day for United’s veteran midfielder, much contrasting from his amazing display at Manchester City two weeks ago. His passing didn’t find the required target on a number of occasions, hence disrupting his side’s ball movement.
Juan Mata – 7.5
He was ineffective on the right side of midfield, but since going central in the second half he was at his best. He controlled long passes really well and fed the wingers on either side with some sublime passing. He was part of the build-up to United’s goal, where he expertly controlled a lofted ball and kept the ball in United’s possession.
Jesse Lingard – 7
He played with real confidence in the attacking third, linking up well with Matteo Darmian (first half) and Tim Fosu-Mensah (second half) on the wing to give Leighton Baines a torrid outing.
Anthony Martial – 8
At 20, Martial already looks an integral part of Manchester United’s future plans. Apart from scoring the winner, he tested Seamus Coleman on a number of instances with his pace and quick dribbling.
He was unlucky not to score in the first half – his shot taking the slightest deflection off Leighton Baines. It wasn’t spotted by the officials as Everton won a goal-kick.
Marcus Rashford – 7
While Sunday was the French prodigy’s day, it was also a day of progress for United’s local wonder-kid. He showed what he was capable of with some dashing runs through the middle and from the right. His excitement to do all the work by himself is something he will learn to tone down.
Having an awareness of his teammates around him and passing the ball around will only make him a better prospect in the future.
Substitutions
Tim Fosu-Mensah - 8
He was instrumental at right-back since replacing Rojo at the break. He was bubbly down the wings – his willingness to take the opposition full-back on is reflective of the desire fans expect from their players.
He provided the assist for Martial’s goal. Once he was shifted to centre-back following the introduction of Antonio Valencia, he grabbed the headlines with a match-winning clearance to deny a whipping cross from reaching Kevin Mirallas at the far post.
Ander Herrera – 7
Since coming on for Michael Carrick on 58 minutes, Herrera was an intense figure in the heart of midfield. His passing was more accurate than Carrick’s and he was getting himself involved in United’s attacking pursuits as well.
Antonio Valencia – N/A
He replaced a tiring Daley Blind late in the game. Apart from a couple of runs down the flanks, he didn’t have enough time to make a mark.
Everton
Joel Robles – 6.5
He didn’t have much to do during the game. He was quite helpless for United’s goal – barely having any reaction time to come across for Martial’s strike.
Seamus Coleman – 6.5
The Irishman was found guilty of allowing Fosu-Mensah’s cross find its way to Martial, leading to the decisive goal. Overall, his performance was impressive. He mostly kept up with the pace of Anthony Martial and made a few crucial interceptions.
He even ran up and down the flanks pretty well. Unfortunately, he gets struck down for that error.
Phil Jagielka – 7
His positioning was pretty good all game. He was not at fault for United’s goal and could have scored twice himself – one header which whacked the crossbar and another shot which was saved by De Gea. In all, it was a frustrating evening for the veteran.
John Stones – 7
Touted as one of England’s future prospects, Stones gave a good account of himself as he made a series of important clearances to keep a hungry Manchester United at bay.
Leighton Baines – 6
It was a definite under-performance by the left-back. He failed to trouble United with his set-piece deliveries. He also found age catching up with him as he looked out of his depth against the teamwork of Fosu-Mensah and Lingard in the second half.
James McCarthy – 6.5
The 25-year-old was pretty robust in midfield, making four to five important tackles to stop Manchester United in their tracks. He made a crucial tackle on Marcus Rashford late in the game when United looked sure to catch Everton on the counter.
Tom Cleverley – 7
He was Everton’s most lively player against his former club. He tried to force the issue by taking Everton’s attacks forward, rather than simply trying to find Lukaku. He was also given space by Michael Carrick to dictate some of the play for Everton.
Aaron Lennon – 6
Lennon was another Toffee with a day to forget. It’s hard to remember an instance the ex-Spurs winger made a meaningful approach into the United penalty area, something he has done so adroitly this season. Maybe it was just the rustiness after the international break.
Ross Barkley – 6
It was a careless display by the Englishman, who seemed to have Lukaku as his only target throughout the 90 minutes. Barkley didn’t trust his abilities to charge at the United defence and unsettle them.
Gerard Deulofeu – 6.5
He was intense in the first half, comprehensively beating Marcos Rojo for pace in the first half. However, his effectiveness faded out in the second half once Darmian was deployed at that position. He was replaced by Kevin Mirallas in the 63rd minute.
Romelu Lukaku – 6.5
He didn’t have too much support from any of his team-mates, who only seemed too keen to punt it forward in his direction and trust his overall skill-set to find an opening for the Toffees.
Substitutions
Kevin Mirallas – 6
The Belgian came on for Deulofeu with around half an hour to go, but could not impact his team’s performance much despite a couple of good attacking runs.
Oumar Niasse – N/A
He replaced Ross Barkley late in the match but had no time to engineer a meaningful chance.
