3/10 for Mourinho's latest experiment - player ratings from Man Utd 2-2 Southampton

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It was a riveting encounter at the St Mary’s Stadium as Manchester United lost further ground on the top four with 2-2 draw against Southampton.

The Saints broke the deadlock with just 13 minutes on the clock, a devastating strike from in-form Stuart Armstrong, who found the back of the net after being teed up by teenager Michael Obafemi. And it would be 2-0 just seven minutes later, this time Cedric Soares curling home a delightful free-kick.

However,  the Red Devils would soon fight their way back into the fixture, firstly through Romelu Lukaku, who ended his 12-match barren run with a well-struck finish past Alex McCarthy, before Ander Herrera brought the scores level just five minutes from half-time.

That is how the game would finish as the second-half failed to separate the sides, and so after a pulsating affair in Hampshire how did the players rate?

Southampton

Alex McCarthy – 5 – After an early scare that nearly proved calamitous, McCarthy collected his head but could do little as Lukaku and Herrera scored two well-timed finishes.

Jack Stephens – 5 – Looked the more assured centre-back of the three, but still largely ineffective as United came back into the match, though his second-half performance was more resound.      

Maya Yoshida – 4 – Failed to shoulder Rashford off the ball for United’s first goal and then again failed just moments later in trying to prevent the England forward from delivering a cross for Herrera’s goal – arguably at fault for both goals.

Jannik Vestergaard – 5 – Offered a physically imposing presence in the heart of Southampton’s defence, but playing in just his seventh start, the Danish defender struggled at times to stifle the United attack, though much like his defensive teammates, looked more resilient after the restart.   

Yann Valery – 5 – A strong performance from the 19-year-old, Valery looked assured at right-wing back and not out of place in his first Premier League start.    

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – 6 – Industrious and wily in the heart of midfield Hojbjerg always made himself available for his teammates and provided a cool head in the middle of the park for the Saints.

Mario Lemina – 6 – A headstrong performance from the former Juve man, Lemina put his body on the line and showed some neat footwork throughout the match.   

Cedric Soares – 6 – Provided some much-needed support down the right to help out Redmond, the Portuguese also scored a quite brilliant free-kick in the first-half as well.      

Nathan Redmond – 7 – Played with an intense energy and wreaked havoc in the final third. Redmond was chaotic for large spells of the game and without question the Saints’ most consistent performer.     

Michael Obafemi – 5 – An encouraging performance from the teenager, Obafemi offered plenty of tenacity and running up front; he also played a delightful ball out wide to tee up Armstrong for his opening goal.   

Stuart Armstrong – 6 – Scored a brilliant goal and always looked to get on the ball further up the pitch for the Saints; the Scotland international was dogged and offered a more creative outlet for his teammates.        

Substitutes:

Manolo Gabbiadini (for Obafemi 63) – 5 – Had a few half opportunities and caused a few tentative problems.   

Steven Davis (for Lemina 90) – N/A – Came on to run the clock down.

Manchester United

David De Gea – 5 – Had little hope of stopping Armstrong’s strike such was the venom, and again could do nothing as Soares found the top bins with a brilliant free-kick.    

Ashley Young – 6 – Offered plenty of width on the wing, United’s skipper never shied away from surging forward whenever possible, and with the three-at-the-back system he had license to do just that.

Scott McTominay – 4 – Playing out of his natural position, McTominay struggled at times to stamp his mark in defence, though he never shied away from receiving the ball and trying to get attacks started, but this was largely an uncomfortable performance.

Phil Jones – 5 – A very tame and average performance from Jones, the England international looked uncomfortable at times in the back three and struggled to thwart Redmond who often ran rings around the defence.   

Nemanja Matic – 3 – The Serb looked out of place in United’s back three from a defensive perspective, though that was hardly his fault as Jose Mourinho claimed before the match that he was forced into the change. Either way, his defence looked wayward and Matic was at the heart of that responsibility.

Key stat: Matic was the only Man Utd player to be dribbled past against Southampton, he was done so twice.

Luke Shaw – 5 – Another who offered width from full-back, Shaw surged forward whenever possible but often struggled to contain Redmond.   

Ander Herrera – 6 – Took his goal well and played more passes than any United midfielder, as well as many more touches and completing the most successful tackles of any player on the pitch.   

Marouane Fellaini – 4 – Played alongside Herrera and Pogba in central midfield and while he offered an aggressive bite in the middle of the park, the Belgian lacked the intensity to really get United going.   

Paul Pogba – 5 – Looked lively whenever on the ball, but the Frenchman just didn’t impose himself on the game and really stamp his authority in the middle of the park – a few bright glimmers and nice touches but capable of so much more.   

Romelu Lukaku – 6 – Held the ball up well enough, but was not given enough support in the final third, though that was hardly his fault; he took his goal well and kept the Saints back three on their toes.   

Marcus Rashford – 7 – United’s biggest threat throughout the match, the England international caused Southampton’s defence numerous problems and was instrumental in his side’s comeback, providing two fantastic assists in the first-half. 

Substitutes:

Diogo Dalot (for Shaw 71) – 5 – Came on and looked assured at right-back. 

Anthony Martial (for Rashford 76) – 5 – Failed to really make a significant impact though he had little time to achieve this. 

Jesse Lingard (for Lukaku 85) – N/A – Only five minutes on the pitch.

The post Southampton 2-2 Man Utd: every player marked out of 10 as Mourinho’s Matic experiment fails miserably appeared first on Squawka News.



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