Anthony Martial‘s hat-trick saw him reach a personal milestone in Manchester United’s 3-0 win over Sheffield United as David de Gea put his Tottenham display behind him on Wednesday.
We pick out five performances as Manchester United piled the pressure back on Chelsea in the Premier League‘s top-four race.
Anthony Martial 9/10
Martial scored a first-half double before completing his hat-trick after the break as Manchester United closed the gap on fourth-placed Chelsea to two points ahead of the Blues’ match against Manchester City on Thursday.
The forward was clinical in steering Marcus Rashford’s cross in after just seven minutes, and a minute before half-time the Frenchman latched onto Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s delivery for his second.
Martial rounded off a fine team goal with a deft lift over Simon Moore for his first career hat-trick, and he was then part of a quintuple substitution when replaced by Odion Ighalo late on.
All that was missing was a standing ovation for Martial, but all he could do was celebrate this moment in an empty Old Trafford as he took his tally to 19 goals for the season – his best ever return for a campaign, two better than the 17 he scored in 2015-16.
Paul Pogba 8/10
After coming off the bench against Spurs on Friday, Paul Pogba played from the off against Sheffield United, joining Bruno Fernandes for the first time in a starting XI.
Pogba’s presence was notable both sides of the pitch, but it was going forward where he wielded his influence as Nemanja Matic covered the centre-backs.
Back at Old Trafford with a win
Hat-trick for @AnthonyMartial
Clean sheetAll of us right now: pic.twitter.com/GfJM6wL1Hf
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) June 24, 2020
Pogba created four chances, while one of several take-ons saw him sublimely nutmeg Sander Berge before Martial took the ball from his feet and shot wide.
Bruno Fernandes 8/10
United fans were treated to 80 minutes of Pogba and Fernandes before the duo came off as part of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s quintuple substitution.
The eagerly-anticipated partnership already looked to be blossoming on Wednesday, with Pogba and Fernandes equally as influential.
Subtle flicks and incisive passes are already traits we come to expect of Fernandes, and his display against the Blades proved he can continue to perform at his own lofty standards, set since his January arrival.
David de Gea 6/10
After his mistake gifted Steven Bergwijn the opener in Friday’s draw at Tottenham, David de Gea was looking to make amends on Wednesday after being publicly backed by Solskjaer.
De Gea ultimately earned a confidence-boosting clean sheet, but he hardly had to work for it on a night where he may have preferred a sterner test to prove his credentials.
Oli Burnie’s tame attempt with less than 10 minutes to go was the only save De Gea had to make.
Marcus Rashford 7/10
As Martial took the headlines, Rashford ably assisted his teammate twice despite an indifferent night of his own in front of goal.
Rashford set-up Martial’s first and third, but missed an open goal in the first half before misjudging the flight of the ball when looking to volley in moments later.
Nevertheless, Rashford proved a tricky customer out wide and should be pleased with his overall contribution in what was an all-round impressive performance from United going forward.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/2NsmcC1
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