Manchester United displayed their enviable squad depth against Burton Albion on Wednesday as the hosts romped away to a 4-1 victory.
Defending champions Manchester United started on a strong note during Wednesday night’s game against Burton, and it comes as no surprise that they beat the visitors 4-1. With 20 minutes played, United found themselves 2-0 up, owing to goals from Marcus Rashford.
From then on, the Red Devils played scintillating football almost reminiscent of the famed Sir Alex Ferguson era. Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial quickly added to the goal tally in what was a relatively easy match for United. Although Burton grabbed a late goal to deny them a clean sheet, the Championship outfit could not keep pace.
Jose Mourinho’s options up front only keep getting better. Rashford has been a revelation as a centre-forward, and he also proved that he could play well alongside Anthony Martial. All in all, United played attacking football from start to finish and indeed earned their victory. The Hard Tackle runs the rule over Jose Mourinho’s men.
Sergio Romero – 6.5/10
The goalkeeper has had better days on the field. He still put up a good show with some brave goalkeeping to deny Burton midway through the first half. All in all though, Romero was not tested much by the opposition and was subbed with just over 10 minutes to go.
Matteo Darmian – 6/10
Darmian has always seemed more comfortable playing at right-back. Again, the defender was not tested much and he was replaced by Luke Shaw later. Although he did maruaded down the right flank quite well, his crossing was just a tad bit disappointing.
Victor Lindelof – 7/10
Lindelof seemed a lot more in control on the night and played an important role in restricting the Burton front men. In fact, it was a good game to give the new, young signing an extra boost of confidence. However, he did make one clumsy error which gifted Burton a decent chance.
Chris Smalling – 6/10
Smalling wasn’t tested much either but he did his best to push whatever came his way. Moreover, his performance was evidence enough as to why he has made the bench ahead of Victor Lindelof in the Premier League a number of times this season.
Daley Blind – 7.5/10
Blind was quite strong when playing offensively. He linked up well with Martial, while being sound at the back as well, except for that one moment where he left what could have been a dangerous cross and cleared the ball straight to the opposition.
Ander Herrera – 7/10
Herrera won back possession for United on plenty of occasions last night. He was always ready to make a run with the ball and worked hard for the entire duration of the match. Interestingly, the midfielder left the prompt passing to Carrick on an understated return to the starting XI.
Michael Carrick – 8/10
The Manchester United captain put up a solid performance at the centre of the park, making his first start of the season. His ball in set up Rashford for the first goal, and he looked lethal on several occasions. It was truly a triumphant return to the side for Carrick and he controlled the game from midfield with ease.
Jesse Lingard – 8/10
Lingard treated the spectators to some very positive attacking runs and got a touch on Carrick’s pass to set up Rashford. He also got a goal for himself, albeit with a deflected effort. Lively and energetic, he covered the ground with relative ease, giving Mourinho some food for thought.
Juan Mata – 7/10
Mata played some lovely balls forward to create several chances for his teammates before seeing an attempt of his own, unfortunately, come back off the post. Regardless, he dominated the opponents with his fleet of a foot. The former Chelsea player had done his job well and was taken off at half-time to earn a well deserved rest.
Anthony Martial – 9.5/10
Last night was undeniably Martial’s time. He was the most exciting player on the pitch, and always looked like he was making something happen. His play in the lead up to the third goal was pleasingly sublime before he coolly put away United’s fourth goal.
Marcus Rashford – 9/10
The youngster finished beautifully to put United 1-0 up before doubling the lead with a confident strike from outside the box. Rashford played a perfectly weighted ball through to Martial for the fourth goal. He had taken until January to score five goals last season, but has already reached that figure this term.
Subs
Luke Shaw (on for Juan Mata) – 6/10
Scott McTominay (on for Marcus Rashford) – 6/10
Joel Pereira (on for Sergio Romero) – 5/10
