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Level on points atop Group F, Manchester United made the trip to Villarreal for their UEFA Champions League matchday-five encounter on Tuesday night. Manchester United’s interim manager Michael Carrick took charge of the team for the first time. He hoped to bring some positivity back to the club after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s dismissal.
Playing at home, Villarreal dominated proceedings early on. They kept hold of the ball better, passed it around nicely and created more chances. Cristiano Ronaldo’s Manchester United, on the other hand, were struggling to find their footing.
David de Gea was called into action by Manu Trigueros in the 27th minute, but the Spaniard passed the test with flying colors. A couple of minutes later, Ronaldo registered Manchester United’s first shot on target, but could not trouble the keeper Geronimo Rulli.
In the 58th minute, Trigueros came close again, this time with an even better effort. De Gea produced the save of the match to deny the Spanish forward.
Then, in the 78th minute, Cristiano Ronaldo came up with the opener for Manchester United, chipping the ball over the head of the Villarreal keeper. Finally, in the 90th minute, Jadon Sancho netted United’s second, capping off an eventful night in Villarreal.
With the win, Manchester United secured Champions League round-of-16 football with a match still to play. Here are the top five standout performers from Manchester United’s 2-0 win over Villarreal:
#5 Bruno Fernandes
Michael Carrick left Bruno Fernandes on the bench against Villarreal on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, his replacement Donny van de Beek did not do enough to justify his inclusion.
When Fernandes finally got the nod to come on in the 66th minute, he took it upon himself to prove a point. In only 27 minutes, he produced two key passes, provided four accurate long balls, and assisted Jadon Sancho’s goal. It was a thoroughly impressive outing by the Portuguese, enough to win him a place in the starting XI the next time out.
#4 Victor Lindelof
Filling in for the injured Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof played an outstanding game against Villarreal on Tuesday night. He was decisive and brave and stopped Villarreal in their tracks more than once.
The Sweden international, who was playing in his fourth Champions League encounter this season, made a total of eight clearances against Villarreal. He won two ground and three aerial duels, made a couple of tackles and blocked two Villarreal shots.
All in all, it was a sure-footed display by Lindelof, and Manchester United were better off for it.
#3 David de Gea
Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has endured some rough patches lately. At Villarreal, however, it was the De Gea of old — full of confidence and decisive shot-stopping.
The Spaniard made a total of three saves in the match, all of them coming from inside the box. Out of all Villarreal players, it was Manu Trigueros who came closest to punishing United, but De Gea was up to the task.
The Spanish forward called De Gea into action a couple of times, once in each half. De Gea leapt to his right on both occasions to parry the efforts away.
It were his invaluable saves that kept the Yellow Submarine at bay and helped United return with maximum points.
#2 Jadon Sancho
Under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Jadon Sancho could not produce the performances many expected. He looked clueless up top, contributing practically nothing to Manchester United’s attacks. On Tuesday, however, he looked a lot sharper and was one of Manchester United’s best performers.
Sancho started on the right flank for Manchester United and combined effortlessly with Aaron Wan-Bissaka. United’s slow start restricted him to his own half for the majority of the first half. But his offensive contribution improved in the second 45.
The Englishman used his pace well to stretch Villarreal's defense. In the 71st minute, Sancho went around Raul Albiol to get through on goal. But Villarreal keeper Geronimo Rulli made himself big to deny him.
In the 90th minute, his efforts finally came to fruition as he found himself at the end of a swift Manchester United counter-attack. The Englishman put his foot through to score his first Manchester United goal and seal round-of-16 qualification for his team.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo
Much has been said about Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United. Many have called it short-sighted, claiming that the Portuguese does not bring enough to the table anymore. On Tuesday night, he once again proved his doubters wrong, showing how big of an influence he can be.
The Portugal captain was determined to mark the post-Solskjaer era with a win. Despite not getting enough time on the ball, Ronaldo seemed to be everywhere. He was always pressing, always urging teammates to make their opponents uncomfortable.
In the first half, he registered Manchester United’s first shot on target, although the effort was meek by Ronaldo’s standards.
In the second 45, Ronaldo kept his head down and continued to chase every single ball. 33 minutes later, he finally scored the go-ahead goal for Manchester United. Thanks to Fred’s pressing, Ronaldo got the chance to go one-on-one with the Villarreal keeper. Unsurprisingly, the 36-year-old made no mistake finishing it off.
Before being subbed off in injury time, Ronaldo also contributed to the build-up of Manchester United’s second goal of the night.
