Manchester United scraped over the line against Southampton courtesy of a goal from the man in hot form, Romelu Lukaku. It wasn’t pretty from the visitors as they were tested against a resolute Southampton attack. This was a typical Mourinho performance, his teams will grind out a result if needed. Southampton would feel a tad bit disappointed in not getting anything from the game, as their efforts were certainly worth a deserved point.
Manchester United have earned a reputation of being ruthless in the final 10 minutes, but were on the backfoot for most of the game. The Saints dominated possession but had nothing to show for at the end of 90 minutes. If the match could be summed up in one sentence, there won’t be anything more fitting than, ‘Saints fail to penetrate the United wall’. The entire back wall of Manchester United deserves extra credit for the 3 points today.
On the eventful day at St Mary’s, there were some decent performances while some players failed to replicate their early season form.
Let’s look at the Man Utd players ratings vs Southampton:
David de Gea – 7/10
He was a bit too slow to come out from his line on the evening but was assuring with his saves. For all of Southampton’s efforts on goal, they didn’t test David de Gea as much as demanded. He’d be mightily pleased with another clean sheet.
Antonio Valencia – 6/10
Offered very little in attack but made up for it in defense. Valencia was up against Nathan Redmond, who did get the better of the Ecuadorian on many occasions, but he did enough to make sure his efforts didn’t count.
Eric Bailly – 8/10
Yet another stellar performance from the Ivorian, he’s settling well in Mourinho’s and will be a guaranteed starter under the Portuguese. Was struggling with his positioning early on, but grew into the game later.
Phil Jones – 8/10
Was tested aerially on several occasions but again, no-nonsense and solid defending from the Englishman on the night.
Ashley Young – 7/10
What a cross from Young for Lukaku’s goal! He is the best crosses on that roster and can produce whipping crosses for plenty of goals this season.
Nemanja Matic – 6/10
A resolute defensive display from the Serbian. He is stuck with multiple roles in Pogba’s absence and it is having an impact on the Serbian. Offered very little in terms of forward play and went anonymous in the second half. The Serbian has seen better days in a red jersey.
Marouane Fellaini – 5/10
A lazy performance from the Belgian. An important clearance was his only contribution. He struggled in his defensive duties and offered very little in attack. Nonexistent.
Juan Mata – 5/10
A quite evening for the Spaniard. Had a decent start but faded as the game progressed.
Marcus Rashford – 6/10
Is he trying hard to impress? His gameplay has become selfish and that should be dealt with as soon as possible. Helped out in defense but was largely anonymous on the night, bar one effort which whizzed past the post.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 6/10
Seemed to be the only threat in Manchester United’s midfield. Brought pace in the attack but was largely wasteful on the night.
Romelu Lukaku – 7/10
Eight in eight for the Belgian. He’s surely working to make his price tag seem a bargain and helped United register yet another victory this season. It can only get better from here on for the Belgian.
Substitutes:
Ander Herrera – 6/10
Gave United the required bite in midfield but failed to finish off a great chance.
Chris Smalling – 6/10
Did nothing significant but helped keep the clean sheet.
