Back to back defeats and a vile Jose Mourinho press conference piled the pressure up on Manchester United before their trip to Turf Moor to contest Burnley who enjoyed an incredible run last season under Sean Dyche. The Clarets have struggled to grab results so far this term and the tie against the depleted Red Devils handed them an opportunity to strike back on Sunday afternoon. But the visitors stepped up in style and secured a comprehensive 2-0 win, thanks to a brace from Romelu Lukaku, to get their season back on track.
Below are the Manchester United players rated in their commanding victory against Burnley.
David De Gea: 7
The reliable custodian was having an unconvincing run between the sticks since the World Cup but finally grabbed his first clean sheet of the new season. He had little trouble throughout but made a couple of smart stops towards the end.
Antonio Valencia: 7
Was aggressive and purposeful down the right flank while going forward. Should have done better to stop the crosses which were frequently whipped in by Charlie Taylor from his left.
Chris Smalling: 7.5
Had a nervy start but improved later on, particularly after being down to ten men. Was helped at times by Fellaini who featured as a very deep-lying midfielder. The Englishman, however, dealt well against Chris Wood, Sam Vokes and also Ashley Barnes when the hosts were pushing for a comeback towards the end.
Victor Lindelof: 8
Had a much better outing as he did well to contain Chris Wood who failed to utilize his physical as well as aerial command. Still needs to work on a few things but the Swedish international had an encouraging show that should uplift his confidence after a tough period of time.
Luke Shaw: 7.5
Mostly played a little higher than usual but did well against the pacy Aaron Lennon and also threatened with overlapping runs, cut insides and goal-bound efforts.
Marouane Fellaini: 7.5
Played much deeper and almost slotted in between Smalling and Lindelof at times. The Belgian was calm, played the ball out of defence and also initiated a few moves from the deep.
Nemanja Matic: 7
A decent outing for the Serbian who kept the ball rolling and did not allow the hosts to dominate the midfield game for the majority of the time. Still not his best but the experience he brought in the middle of the park was useful and influential.
Paul Pogba: 6.5
Had a disappointing game versus Spurs. Improved his game this afternoon but also missed a spot-kick midway through the second half. Was replaced by Eric Bailly in the closing moments of the match.
Jesse Lingard: 7
The Englishman looked lively with the ball and played his part in United’s second late in the first half. Was a bit underwhelming after the break and got replaced by Ander Herrara with 15 minutes of regulation time left.
Alexis Sanchez: 8
Struggled initially down the left flank against Phil Bardsley but assisted Lukaku spectacularly with an imposing cross to break the deadlock. Combined well with the big Belgian on a number of occasions and was eventually replaced by Marcus Rashford around the hour mark.
Romelu Lukaku: 9
The Belgian marksman missed an empty net against Spurs on Monday night but delivered a match-winning display this afternoon netting both of their goals. He also came close on a few more occasions but was denied by Joe Hart in Burnley goal.
Substitutes
Marcus Rashford: 5
Earned a spot-kick having been fouled by Aaron Lennon inside the box but was shown a red following a confrontation with Bardsley minutes later.
Ander Herrera: 6.5
Helped the visitors in keeping the tempo of the game slow and kept hold of the ball to deny Burnley from staging a late comeback.
Eric Bailly: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
