Two traditional rivals faced off in a friendly at Perth as Manchester United went past Leeds United with ease by winning four goals to nil. This was Leeds United’s first loss this preseason.
Leeds United started slow, and their defence was breached early as Rashford came close to scoring but was denied by the post. The Whites slightly struggled to deal with the physicality of Paul Pogba and Scott McTominay in midfield.
Pogba’s pass opened up Leeds, and Wan Bissaka was able to find Greenwood for the first goal. The Whites were not sitting back and tried to have a go, and they should have equalised. However, they failed to take their chances from close quarters. The Whites left themselves vulnerable on the counter, and Rashford managed to double the lead later on.
The Yorkshire side looked a bit leggy in the second half. Apart from two wayward attempts from Jack Harrison, they didn’t muster much on the attacking front. They conceded the third goal early on through a corner. Manchester United had a complete new eleven for the second half, and that made a lot of difference in terms of energy. Liam Cooper lunged toward Chong in the box and Martial scored from the spot to make it a resounding win for the Manchester giants.
Kiko Casilla 6
Couldn’t have done much to prevent any of the goals. Read the game well to clear the ball by coming off the line.
Gaetano Berardi 5
Marcus Rahsford had his number throughout the first half, and he must have been glad to see him not turn up in the second. Tried his best defensively but the gulf in quality was visible.
Liam Cooper 6.5
Made a poor judgement in the second half which resulted in a penalty. Did a fine job and made some crucial blocks and interceptions apart from that. The captain was quite clearly the best defender on the pitch for Bielsa.
Barry Douglas 6
Started poorly as he was caught out of position but improved as the game went on. Linked up play well while moving forward down the left side.
Stuart Dallas 5.5
Had to go off because of a head injury in the second half. Worked hard but was often stretched on the counter-attack.
Kalvin Phillips 6
Had a mixed bag of a game. Was impressive on occasions as he managed to nick some balls. Played some eye-catching diagonals as well. However, United had too much quality, and Pogba and McTominay were too strong for him in midfield. Is to be blamed for the goal which Jones scored through a corner.
Adam Forshaw 6
Linked up play well in the first half when Leeds started to get some foothold in the game. Had a tough time in dealing with the physicality of Pogba.
Pablo Hernandez 7
The Spaniard is still the brightest spark for the Whites in the attacking third. His movement and passing was on point and was behind some good moves in the first half.
Jack Harrison 6
Looked extremely threatening as he got himself in some space down the left. Like last season, can improve on his composure while taking shots from in and around the box.
Kemar Roofe 5.5
Worked hard as usual but wasn’t able to get any chance in the attacking third.
Patrick Bamford 5
The best chance fell to him, but Romero denied him from close quarters. Had to feed off scraps for the most parts.
Substitute
Mateusz Bogusz 6
Looked sharp with his movement in the attacking third.
Jordan Stevens 5
Provided fresh legs after coming on.
Bryce Hosannah 4
Was hesitant when he found himself on the ball from the right-hand side. Could have done better.
