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Manchester United 3-1 Aston Villa: Player Ratings

By Keegan Anderson

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Manchester United had a near perfect return to action after the international break against Aston Villa, with Wayne Rooney scoring a brilliant goal and Ander Herrera netting twice to give the Red Devils a 3-1 victory.

United dominated possession for much of the game and capitalized on several chances to secure three crucial points that will see them temporarily move into third in the Premier League.

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David De Gea (6/10)

Had a pretty solid game other than the goal he allowed against Benteke late on, when the Belgian striker saw a weak shot squeeze under the Spanish keeper. Besides that, De Gea came to the rescue whenever necessary to keep United in control for much of the game.

Antonio Valencia (6/10)

Didn’t have all too much to do defensively with Weimann not making any fuss. He made more contributions offensively, making pacey runs down the flank to send in crosses or work the ball back to the midfield. The crosses mostly failed to find the mark but they put Villa under constant pressure.

Phil Jones (7/10)

Jones paired up with Rojo to limit any damage done by Benteke and Agbonlahor until Benteke caught a lucky break leading to Villa’s only goal. He made a very good challenge on the byline to prevent a Villa player breaking through on goal, as was typical of his showing. Villa were asking some questions early on in the second half but the defence responded well by preventing any goals.

Marcos Rojo (8/10) 

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The center back came back into the squad as a replacement for Chris Smalling. Like Jones, Rojo held off the Villa strikers for the majority of the game. He made more contributions going forward as well, pairing up nicely with Blind and Young down the left side of the field to push the attack forward. He even had a beautiful shot from outside the box get tipped over the bar by Brad Guzan. Rojo will have given van Gaal a selection dilemma at the back with he, Jones and Smalling all playing well of late, despite Smalling missing out due to illness.

Daley Blind (8/10)

The versatile Dutch midfielder by trade started at left back once again, and yet again he proved his worth. In the first half, Blind had a perfect stat line, completing 100% of his passes, winning 100% of his tackles, and winning 100% of the his aerial duels to go alongside his assist. In the second half, he continued to make overlapping runs along side Ashley Young to create havoc for the Villa defense.

Michael Carrick (6/10)

The English international didn’t put his trademark play on this game but he didn’t really need to. He made the necessary passes to keep play swinging from side to side and distributed the ball from defense to attack. Defensively he added a layer of support to the back line to keep Villa’s attack at bay, with Fabian Delph being largely ineffective for the game. At one point in the game, Carrick, Fellaini, Herrera and Blind had a 96% passing accuracy.

Juan Mata (6/10)

Last match’s heroics didn’t carry over into this match for the Spanish midfielder, but he was able to provide creative and incisive sideways passes. His best attempt on goal was a rebound that was cleared close to the goal line, as the ball was on him in a hurry and he had no time to place it left or right of the defender. Still, he’s shown he is a necessary component of the squad going forward.

Ander Herrera (9/10)

Herrera was voted as the Man of the Match after his brilliant play and two goals. Both goals came from composed finishes, the first in the closing minutes before the end of the first half to gain the lead and the second in stoppage time to seal the victory. Herrera now has five league goals for United this season, one more than striker Radamel Falcao. For the amount United spent on him last summer, he’s turned out to be a fine addition to the squad, adding a goal threat from the midfield that’s been lacking in recent seasons as well as key passing to go along the other creative midfielders.

Marouane Fellaini (6/10)

Fellaini got the start because van Gaal sees him as undroppable at the moment but it wasn’t the big man’s best performance which is surprising given the form he showed before and during the international break. The wingers were constantly looking to send crosses in Fellaini’s direction but he was unable to out-muscle the Villa defence and create a chance. He did however have a nice bit of control that led to an early chance for Rooney, who was eventually brought down and should have won a penalty. The Belgian gave the ball away unnecessarily a couple of times but otherwise had decent showing in the win.

Ashley Young (8/10)

Once again on the left-wing, Young looked to be United’s most dangerous threat, especially on a run that cut through the Villa defence early in the first half and put them under immense pressure early. As mentioned, he linked up well on the left side of the field with Blind, as the two seem to be forming a fluid partnership with Shaw remaining absent. All in all he was too much for Alan Hutton to handle, as Young looked to cut inside and send crosses into the red shirts. Only knock on his game was that his crosses often failed to find their mark and he was eventually replaced by Angel Di Maria.

Wayne Rooney (7/10)

Rooney should have won the aforementioned penalty but looked frustrated after not being granted the decision. He doubled United’s lead in the second half with a superb finish from a Di Maria cross but overall struggled throughout. The striker took the ball down from the cross with a delightful touch before turning and volleying the ball into the top left corner while Villa could only stand and marvel. The captain showed why he was elected to the position, giving his all once again and eventually playing a huge role in Herrera’s second goal.

SUBSTITUTES:

Angel Di Maria (6/10)

The Argentine came on for Young in a surprise switch but made an impact with a fine cross into Rooney for United’s second goal. Di Maria will need to continue to show well if he hopes to regain his starting spot but he should expect to start on the bench in the Manchester derby.

Radamel Falcao (4/10)

Falcao came on for Fellaini late but didn’t have any effect on the game really, although it was at a time where United weren’t going for the kill. He had a gaffe when he tried a first time volley towards goal but only succeeded in sending the ball looping into the stand. It’s all but certain that United will part ways with the Colombian come the end of the season and his old club have made it clear they’d take him.

Next: Herrera the star as United win 3-1

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