Manchester United Player Ratings vs Watford: Awful Maguire gets 2; 7/10 van de Beek shines at last

Manchester United continued their dismal form, succumbing to a miserable 4-1 defeat to Watford.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is under extreme pressure after this result, as now many will call for his head in the aftermath of a woeful performance. Manchester United was beaten by a well-drilled Watford side 4-1 at Vicarage Road, with Joshua King, Ismaila Sarr, Joao Pedro, and Emmanuel Dennis getting the job done for the Hornets.

Watford started on the front foot and looked dangerous going forward as Manchester United displayed defensive frailty. The Hornets came under pressure after winning a penalty but missing from the spot, despite getting a retake. However, the home side kept knocking on the door.

Joshua King finished a well-worked move to give Watford the lead, and before half-time, Ismaila Sarr redeemed himself after the penalty fiasco to double the advantage. In the second period, substitute Donny van de Beek pulled one back for Manchester United to provide hope before things went from bad to worse.

Harry Maguire received his marching orders after two yellow cards in a fairly short period to reduce his side to ten men. Despite looking shaky for long periods between the red card and the late goals, Watford somehow maintained their lead while losing Sarr to injury.

Joao Pedro was on hand to score a brilliant late third goal to clinch the tie in stoppage time. Before the final whistle, Dennis capped a brilliant performance with a strike of his own and finished the game at 4-1. Here’s how the Manchester United players fared against Watford.

David de Gea – 6/10

The Spaniard remains in top form, and those two spot-kick saves proved that. Yet with a shambolic defence in front, there’s very little de Gea can do to impact his side’s final results.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 4/10

Terrible right from the start. While his impact in the final third was barely minimal, Dennis shredded him down to bits on the flank, with Watford attacking the weakness on Wan-Bissaka’s side regularly.

Victor Lindelof – 3.5/10

The constant changes at the back always destabilise defences, and Lindelof is a clear example of the problem. He never looked sharp to begin with and was poor in his defensive endeavours. At times, it felt as if the entire backline was trembling with fear.

Harry Maguire – 2/10

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A tough night for the captain, who struggled throughout the game before being sent off for two unnecessary challenges. Massively let his team down when they needed an inspiring win to ease the pressure on their manager.

Luke Shaw – 4.5/10

He never got going on the evening, as Ismaila Sarr seemed to get the better of him for most parts. Got substituted after a knock on the head while blocking a close-range short inside the box.

Scott McTominay – 4/10

He struggled right from the start, conceding the early penalty which seemed to have made him shaky for the rest of his time on the pitch. He was withdrawn early as he did not look up to scratch physically and mentally during the match.

Nemanja Matic – 4/10

Looked comfortable on the ball early on but failed to catch up to the speed of Watford’s game. Matic’s role was to provide some level of screening for the defence, which he couldn’t. Gave away possession in dangerous areas on more than one occasion.

Bruno Fernandes – 3/10

Sloppy right from the first whistle, Bruno Fernandes kept getting into promising positions in attack and somehow had no composure all day. His bizarre lob into his box resulted in the penalty for Watford. He looked disconnected  from the pitch all afternoon.

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Jadon Sancho – 5.5/10

Whenever he got the ball, the English winger was lively, creating good chances. He played a key role in the solitary United goal. He did well on the flanks, although he is still way below his best level. Nonetheless, there is no reason he should be dropped for the next one.

Cristiano Ronaldo – 5/10

Ronaldo had some decent chances, which could have turned the game on its head had he taken those properly. He missed some good opportunities by his standards and will rue those moments when he looks at the final scoreline.

Marcus Rashford – 5/10

Rashford, despite some lively moments on either flank, did not look at his sharpest and probably still lacks match fitness. He needs a consistent run of games in the team to improve.

Substitutes

Anthony Martial – 4/10

Martial’s presence may be added a bit of freshness to the side, although he was quiet for most parts of the second half, having no impact whatsoever.

Donny van de Beek – 7/10

He was Manchester United’s best player on the pitch since the moment he came on. He scored their only goal at a crucial time, creating chances for teammates as they searched for an equaliser. The Maguire red card turned the game on its head and created a gap between the teams. However, for van de Beek, it was a fantastic outing, something he’d been hoping for a long time.

Diogo Dalot – 4/10

He came on for Shaw and became part of a shaky defence that conceded two more late goals.

Jesse Lingard – N/A

He was sent on too late to have any impact.