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#3 Brandon Williams
Brandon Williams’ emergence last season pushed Luke Shaw to the limits of his abilities. Such was the impact of the teenager that Shaw had to play out of his skin to keep his position in the Manchester United playing-XI. However, the youngster lost a bit of his zeal and bite by the end of the season as his legs seemed to catch up with him. Against the Hatters, though, Williams showed signs of a return to his previous form.
The Englishman was full of running and did not give the hosts' backline a moment’s respite on the night. Williams spent a chunk of the game closer to the opposition box and required no invitation to bomb forward.
Williams combined well with Lingard and Mata and hugged the touchline, freeing up space around the box for the midfielders to operate. His one-touch play inside the box was excellent at times and had Mata not miscued a glorious opportunity, Williams would even have picked up an assist.
However, Williams did not ignore his defensive responsibilities either. He was tenacious as usual and tracked back every run diligently. But some of his best work was done in and around the opposition box. It was here that he won the penalty that helped Manchester United take the lead and ultimately win the game.
#2 Eric Bailly
The Ivorian was the most probable choice to replace the erroneous Victor Lindelof in the Manchester United first-XI.
Solskjaer gave Bailly his first start of the season on Tuesday night, and the player did not disappoint. The Ivorian brought a calming presence alongside Maguire that enabled the Manchester United skipper to venture forward with greater adventure. The Ivorian himself kept the ball moving around well and showed decent positional awareness.
Bailly was solid with his tackles and covered his ground well. He was not risk-averse but did not dive around either. His controlled aggression and composure was a welcome addition to the Manchester United backline.
On the few occasions that the Hatters tried to counter-attack, Bailly used his speed and understanding of the game to thwart the home side. He even managed an outstanding goal-line clearance in the dying moments of the game with the score at 1-0.
Even when Maguire was caught out of position a couple of times, Bailly covered very well for his defensive partner, showing signs of a budding partnership. Solskjaer could be tempted to stick with the Ivorian for the weekend’s game after seeing an assured performance from the player on the night.
#1 Juan Mata
The Spaniard registered Manchester United’s first shot on target as early as the fourth minute, and it was a sign of things to come.
Mata started in the right-forward role but was allotted the freedom to drift inwards and switch flanks. That resulted in the Spaniard operating across the front-line and creating all sorts of trouble for the home side.
Mata built up a quick understanding with Van de Beek who played an excellent dummy to help the Spaniard register his first shot on target. The two of them found each other around the box with uncanny ease.
The Spaniard’s movement inside the box was outstanding; he took up little pockets of spaces around the area and orchestrated the Manchester United attack with ease. Mata continued to be Manchester United’s main threat, pulling the strings and picking out teammates in good positions.
When Williams won the spot-kick, the Spaniard stepped up and sent James Shea the wrong way to give his team the lead. By the time he made way for Mason Greenwood in the 78th minute, Mata had all but ensured Manchester United’s progress to the next round.
Also Read: Top 4 alternatives to Victor Lindelof in the current Manchester United squad.
