It wasn’t a typical smash and grab — not by any means. But Manchester United walk away 1-0 winners thanks to Anthony Martial’s late goal.
Manchester United left it late, and Martial stepped up to keep Manchester United’s title hopes alive. On a cold, rainy afternoon in north-England, this was a massive result against now third-place Tottenham.
The match was 80 minutes of booting the ball from one defense to the other. Both teams came out defensive, and both struggled to get anything going.
Henrik Mkhitaryan was abysmal, and Ander Herrera wasn’t much better. United’s midfield once again suffered without star-man Paul Pogba in the side. However, Rashford was replaced by Martial in the 70th minute, and the Frenchman would go one to score the biggest goal of the season so far.
This 1-0 win is huge in the landscape of the title race. Had United dropped points, the title race could have very well been over already.
But now Manchester United sit just two points behind the leaders. City still have to play today, but 3 points now separates United from third place Tottenham.
Player ratings
GK David de Gea, 7 — Much more involved passing this match due to the 3-5-2 formation Mourinho went with. Spread the ball well, made and made huge first half save.
DF Eric Bailly, 7 — Bailly was back in the lineup after his injury and didn’t miss a step. His speed helped snuff out many a Tottenham attack.
DF Phil Jones, 8 — Another man back from Injury. Jones continued his great form. Was at the heart of the three in the back formation.
DF Chris Smalling, 7 — A solid performance from Smalling. Fell asleep at times, but also made huge cleareances and tackles.
MF Antonio Valencia, 7.5 — Valencia found himself playing as a right wing-back and didn’t miss a step. Nearly opened the scoring with a fantastic half-volley.
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MF Nemanja Matic, 7 — Struggled to put passes together, but provided excellent cover of the back line.
MF Henrik Mkhitaryan, 4.5 — The Armenian has seemingly forgotten how to play football. His first half was horrible. Somewhat salvaged the performance with a promising 5 minute stint before he was replaced by Lingard.
MF Ander Herrera, 5.5 — Not a good performance by United’s 2016-17 player of the year. His passes were all over the place. However, his passion and fearlessness in midfield was a great asset in this match.
MF Ashely Young, 8 — Who saw this coming from Young? He was supposed to be sold two years ago it seems. But he’s had a revival at left-back, and today he was dominant from the left wing-back position.
FW Marcus Rashford, 6.5 — Rashford came close to scoring off an Ashley Young thumping cross, however, he was without the ball for most of the match.
FW Romelu Lukaku, 8 — Another match where the Big Belgian was isolated and void of service. However, like last week, he found a way to get involved. Fantastic flick-on to set up the Martial winner. Also hit the post with a header.
Substitutes
MF Jesse Lingard, 6.5 — Brought on for the struggling Mkhitaryan in the 60th minute. Immediately brought a spark and put in a great cross that Lukaku headed onto the post. Missed a chance to kill the game off at the end.
FW Anthony Martial, 8.5 — On for Rashford in the 70th minute, Tony Martial scored the biggest goal of the season for Manchester United. He saved three points to keep the title race alive. What a waste of money (sarcasm).
MF Matteo Darmain, NR — Brought on for Young in the 90th minute. Helped see the game out.
Next: Manchester United: Outlook for the season ahead
This was a season-defining game for Manchester United. It seemed destined to end 0-0, but the Red Devils pulled out that Old Trafford magic and Martial delivered. The title race is certainly back on. Its your move, City.