David Moyes and his side will likely rue the two points dropped rather than celebrate the single point gained, as Manchester United and Real Sociedad played to a goalless draw in a Champions League Group Stage match played at the Anoeta Stadium in San Sebastian, Spain on Tuesday night. After enduring a largely uneventful opening 45 minutes, fans of both sides were treated to a more open and entertaining game after the break, with United missing on three separate golden opportunities to secure the victory. Javier Hernandez and Robin Van Persie will both be disappointed for misfiring, the Mexican from directly in front of goal and the Dutchman from both open play and the penalty spot.
A late Marouanne Fellaini foul saw the Belgian shown an early exit for his second yellow card of the evening, although happening as it did in the last minute of regulation the visitors went largely unpunished for their midfielder's excessive fouling.
Herewith, the individual player ratings for a draw that extends the current unbeaten streak to seven before League leaders Arsenal visit Old Trafford at the weekend.
De Gea: Not much to do before half time. Busier after the break but never really tested. 7.0
Smalling: Still struggled to convince at right back, and strangely for his size, was beaten in the air a number of times. 6.5
Ferdinand: Never under real pressure. 7.0
Vidic: Good distribution from the back today and showed that his recovery pace is still there. 7.5
Evra: Saw lots of the ball in the offensive end of the pitch but found little joy. 6.0
Valencia: Carried the ball forward, but was unable to translate the possession into opportunity. 6.0
Fellaini: More involved this game and showed some prowess the the air. Broke up play with his physicality but got caught in possession a number of times. Played in constant danger of being shown a second yellow for accumulated fouls; thankfully he lasted until the 90th minute before being shown the door. 6.0
Kagawa: Moved off the ball much too easily and struggled to get involved in the early going. Teed up Chicharito and must still be wondering how the Mexican fired a blank. Looked a significantly better player when moved into a more central role after the departure of Rooney and Hernandez. 6.5
Hernandez: Very little cutting edge early, and was forced to drop deep just to touch the ball. He misfired badly when Kagawa set the table just after the break. 6.0
Rooney: Worked his socks off but never truly saw the ball in a dangerous position. 7.0
Substitutes:
Van Persie (Rooney), 63: No sooner did he come on than the post was shaking. Unfortunately, he managed to hit the same upright from the spot with the game in his hands. 6.0
Young (Hernandez), 63: Fantastic cross to find his fellow substitute, but the Dutchman was unable to convert. As per usual was toppled for a penalty, which went for naught. Looked bright. 8.0
Jones (Kagawa), 91: N/A
This is farlieonfootie for November 6.
So Young was our best player of the night? Or is that a 8.0 for theatrics?
ReplyDeleteNot sure if he was the best or everyone else was just flat. While the dive was embarrassing (again), you can't argue with the fact that he created more opportunities in his 30 minute cameo than the others did in 90 minutes. And he actually had a nice cross or two -- who knew?!
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