Man Utd defeated Everton 3-1 in the FA Cup at Old Trafford, and Marcus Rashford had another outstanding performance.
Rashford and Antony scored
Rashford’s wing wizardry
Marcus Rashford can’t do a lot wrong for Man Utd at the moment and having proven his quality in front of goal recently, he produced more of an orthodox wing performance in inspiring the win against Everton.
Rashford created both goals by showing speed from a wide position to go past his man. In the first half he had Ben Godfrey isolated and burst down the outside of him before rolling a low cross for an Antony tap-in.
United’s leading goalscorer did often come infield after that, swapping positions with Anthony Martial and the pair did combine a few times on the left.
But when a crossfield pass to Rashford found him pinned to the left touchline early in the second half, but with space to drive into, he had only one thing on his mind. He broke into the penalty area then twice beat Seamus Coleman, slowing down before speeding up again, and from a tight angle his low cross was turned into his own net by Conor Coady this time.
Rashford’s desire to run at players is a sign of the confidence flowing through his game at the moment and if he can consistently add that to his game, beating players on the outside on the left, as well as coming infield to score, then he could well develop into the perfect left-sided forward.
He was named man of the match for his two assists against Everton and just after that had been announced on the Old Trafford tannoy he scored again, converting the penalty that sealed victory. It made it five goals and three assists in five games since the World Cup
Antony’s inconsistency
The same can’t yet be said for Antony, who should have benefited from his third-minute goal but instead produced another relatively disappointing performance.
It was the Brazilian’s first goal since scoring at Goodison Park in the league but by the end of the first half he was earning a few groans around Old Trafford.
Antony’s one-footedness has always been obvious but it’s also starting to become a problem for United. He has no intention of going down the outside onto his right foot, but he’s becoming easy to defend against. On a couple of occasions he took too long on the ball and ended promising attacking opportunities, but when he led a breakaway with the score at 1-1, his failure to play a right-footed pass inside to Martial or Rashford was a sign of his biggest issue.
Instead, he checked back out towards the touchline and it allowed Everton to regroup. The chance of a counter had gone. He’d also played a weak right-footed pass on the edge of the Everton box earlier in the game, which may have dented his confidence in his weaker foot.
Antony deserves credit for the goal. It was laid on a plate by Rashford but his movement in the middle to find space was excellent. It’s when he has the ball in wide area that he needs to become more versatile and more unpredictable. He could follow Rashford’s example.
Shaw’s role hints at transfer possibility
You have to wonder what Harry Maguire is making of Luke Shaw’s renaissance as a centre-back in a four-man defence. The United captain is now effectively the fifth-choice for his club.
Ten Hag has spoken of the value of having Shaw in that centre as a left-footed passing option and clearly feels that is beneficial to his team’s build-up. It won’t be a permanent move, with Lisandro Martinez easing his way back in, it might give us a clue as to his thoughts going forward.
United have three right-footed centre-backs and just Martinez as a left-footer, but if there is a possibility of Maguire leaving the club this summer to find first-team football elsewhere, then perhaps the priority will be another left-footer, offering back-up on both sides of the defence.
De Gea blunder
If there’s an improvement Erik ten Hag would like to see in David de Gea’s game it’s with his feet, but trying to control a low cross on his goalline wasn’t what he had in mind.
The Spaniard’s mistake to gift Everton an equaliser is one of the more bizarre he will make in his career. There will also be a shade of embarrassment and how it came about and how amateurish it looked.
At least with De Gea’s mistakes at Brentford at the start of this season they were explainable and familiar, we had seen all goalkeepers make them at some point in their careers. This one felt almost unprecedented for a goalkeeper.
It was an error caused by a bit of complacency. De Gea still had one hand wrapped around the post when Neal Maupay fired the ball at him. He looked like he was expecting the ball to go out of play and was taken aback when it was kept alive. The placing of his hand on the post left him no time to react, so the ball rattled between his legs and fell to Conor Coady, who couldn’t miss from a yard out.
Later in the half De Gea came off his line to sweep up but sent an aimless punt down the pitch, when an easier pass was on. The flag did go up, handing possession back to United, but Ten Hag’s initial reaction was to raise his hands towards his goalkeeper for risking giving possession away.
Jack Butland, signed on a loan for the rest of the season on Friday morning, was sat in the stands in his United coat watching his new team. Nobody truly expects him to challenge De Gea during his time at the club, but it was an inauspicious start for the No. 1 with a new goalkeeper watching on.
Casemiro is a referee’s friend
Casemiro’s ability to avoid a yellow card didn’t go down well in Wolverhampton on New Year’s Eve, when Julen Lopeteguio was stunned that he didn’t get booked in the first half and furious it didn’t add up to a sending-off when he did in the second half.
The Brazilian is already developing a reputation as one of those holding midfielders who can work a disciplinary tightrope very adroitly. He should probably have seen yellow inside the first half-hour against Everton for scything down Demerai Gray, but got away with it and he managed to keep referee Darren England on his side. When he pulled down Maupay just before the break with Everton in a decent position there was still no card.
It’s a good skill to have and something you gain with experience. It’s reminiscent of another Brazilian holding midfielder, in Fernandinho. He would stop countless counter-attacks against Manchester City with subtle tactical fouls and would somehow manage to avoid a booking more often than not. United might have their own master of the dark arts now.
