Manchester United travelled to the St. Mary’s Stadium to face off against Southampton earlier this afternoon hoping to bounce back from their 2-1 loss versus Crystal Palace last weekend. The Red Devils made a bright start to the game and scored in the 10th minute courtesy of Daniel James’ goal. However, the Saints came back strong but failed to find the equaliser in the first half.
The second half was more of the same with the home side looking threatening on the counter due to their high-press up the pitch. Jannik Vestergaard finally managed to score the equaliser for the Saints when he found the back of the net with his well-placed header in the 58th minute.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men were handed an advantage when Kevin Danso was given his marching orders after he received his second caution of the game. However, the Red Devils couldn’t capitalise on their numerical advantage as the match finished with the final scoreline of 1-1 after the full-time whistle.
Let’s take a look at each Man United player’s performance during the contest against the Saints.
GK: David De Gea – 5/10
Maybe the Spanish keeper could have done better with his initial save in the lead-up to Jannik Vestergaard’s goal in the second half. However, he was relatively untested during the game and didn’t make too many mistakes when distributing the ball out from the back.
RB: Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6/10
The former Crystal Palace full-back kept things tidy at the back and was a decent outlet going forward as well.
CB: Victor Lindelof – 4/10
He gave away the ball cheaply at times and found it challenging to cope with the intensity of the Southampton attackers. Lindelof was beaten easily by Vestergaard in the air which led to the Southampton equaliser in the second half.
CB: Harry Maguire – 6/10
The English centre-back passed the ball accurately and looked comfortable while in possession of the ball. He was also a commanding presence inside his own box.
LB: Ashley Young – 7/10
The English veteran made some crucial last-ditch clearances while facing his own goal. He was also a menacing presence down the left flank but failed to deliver a decisive pass in the final third.
CM: Paul Pogba – 4/10
The Frenchman was too slow and ineffective on the ball and struggled to create too many chances in the opposition half.
CM: Scott McTominay – 6/10
He put in a tireless shift in midfield and made some important interceptions for his team. However, McTominay was not at all inventive with his passes in the Saints half.
RM: Andreas Pereira – 4/10
He had a very quiet game down the right-wing as he failed to get involved with others in front of the opposition goal.
CAM: Juan Mata – 5.5/10
The Spaniard linked up quite effectively with others around him and was looking like a player who would be able to unlock the Saints defence. However, his impact on the game faded in the second half, which led to his substitution after the hour mark.
LM: Daniel James – 8/10
The Welsh winger was by far Man United’s biggest goal-threat going forward. He made some penetrative runs out on the wide areas and scored with another brilliant finish to give his side the lead in the first half. It was another memorable performance for the Red Devils youngster.
ST: Marcus Rashford – 4/10
His first touch often let him down today. Rashford was poor in possession of the ball and couldn’t find too many goal-scoring opportunities inside the Saints penalty box.
Substitutes:
CAM: Jesse Lingard – 5/10
The English attacker was a bit selfish on the ball and lacked the cutting edge in the final third.
CM: Nemanja Matic – 4/10
The Serbian midfield ace was too slow on the ball and couldn’t create enough chances when Man United were a man up in the final quarter of the game.
ST: Mason Greenwood – 6/10
The youngster put in a nice, little cameo when he came on in the second half. He nearly scored with his attempt which was expertly saved by the Saints keeper.
