The Red Devils looked more potent in attack during the win over Derby
Manchester United silenced critics with a decisive win over Derby in the FA Cup, in large part due to their superior attacking play as a unit.
Despite Louis van Gaal‘s team being notorious for sleep-inducing football with countless backwards and sideways passes, his side entertained the eye in the 3-1 handling of Derby County in the FA Cup fourth round. Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata, and Daley Blind all made their way on to the scorer’s sheet with combinations of individual flair and well-worked team-wide moves forward.
The skipper curled a beautiful shot into the side netting after a clever touch opened a pocket of space among four defenders. Both Blind and Mata were the recipients of perfect passes across the box, resulting in composed finishes into the corners.
Ahead of the Stoke City match, when Manchester United will need to be at its best to keep pace with a dangerous combination of Arnautovic and Xherdan Shaqiri, Jesse Lingard discussed the manager’s system that led to the Cup win with ManUtd.com. Commenting on how the team shifted its mentality towards pressing football, the winger said:
"“It was really positive. We started on the front foot, we played with freedom and I think we excited the fans. We have to press teams in most games now, put them on the back foot and force mistakes, then we can get the second ball and start playing football. “"
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The high press was particularly evident in the lead up to Mata’s goal, as the Spaniard forced a Derby defender to haphazardly clear from his own corner. The clearance quickly resulted in a successive Manchester United attack, concluding with a goal from the player who started it all.
Rooney and Anthony Martial, individually, outclassed the Derby defense – with the captain’s strike and the Frenchman’s bursts down the flanks wreaking havoc. Lingard further commented on their involvement in shifting the fortune in favor of the Red Devils:
"“Wayne’s goal settled our nerves but they equalised before the break so we had to come out in the second half with the confidence to keep playing our football. I read that it was our biggest away end of the season. Our fans are always great – win, lose or draw, they’re always there to support us and the lads really appreciate it.”"
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"“Anthony was brilliant. I know the Derby right-back [Cyrus Christie] well from my time here and he said afterwards that Anthony got past him a few times, and he got an assist as well. But that’s the talent he’s got.”"
Despite the impressive display against the lower league opponent, Lingard and teammates will be well-aware of the tough upcoming schedule. The Premier League, beginning with Stoke, will be a grueling test here on out, while the Europa League and FA Cup will add in the occasional challenge. On how the team is approaching the upcoming match and beyond, the 23-year-old said:
"“The games are coming thick and fast now, so we have to prepare right mentally; we have to get our recovery levels as good as they can be. In terms of our mentality, we don’t look too far ahead or behind. We take each game as it comes and we know we’ll have to be at our best to beat Stoke.”"
Next: United Potential XI to face Stoke
The road to competing for a top four position begins with the match against Stoke, and despite the quick turnaround, Manchester United will need to be mentally sharp and physically able if they’re to take the three points at Old Trafford.