After a losing streak in the Premier League, Manchester United got back on track with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Everton on Sunday evening.
The Red Devils got off to a slow start and found themselves trailing early on after Alex Iwobi scored his first goal of the year with a spectacular solo effort. But the team captained by Erik ten Hag responded magnificently and leveled the score not long after that with a fine finish from Antony, who continued his excellent scoring streak.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored his 700th career goal just before halftime, giving United the lead and putting them in control of the game. Ronaldo ran in behind the defense and finished the play by slotting the ball into the back of the net. Everton made a late push for an equalizer, but Ten Hag's side was able to hold on for the win and move back up to fifth place in the Premier League table.
At Goodison Park, there were both successful teams and unsuccessful teams.
WINNERS
Cristiano Ronaldo
Ronaldo has had a difficult start to the season as he has been unable to find his form and as a result has been left out of the Premier League XI since their 4-0 victory over Brentford. This has been a source of frustration for Ronaldo. However, the five-time winner of the Ballon d'Or was given a chance to shine when he replaced the injured Anthony Martial at the thirty-minute mark of the match.
Anthony Martial and a pair of goals from Marcus Rashford allowed Ten Hag's team to overcome a one-goal deficit at the break, despite the fact that Cristiano Ronaldo had a number of opportunities to score in the second half.
And he grabbed that chance with both hands and ran with it. The Portuguese superstar scored just 15 minutes after coming on as a substitute by racing onto a perfectly executed pass from Casemiro and then slipping the ball past Jordan Pickford for his 700th career club goal. This was the milestone goal in his career. Given that Ronaldo, now 37 years old, has been under a lot of pressure in the past, this could turn out to be a very significant moment in United's season.
ANTONY
The legendary player for Manchester United called Antony a "one trick pony" after the Red Devils' victory at Omonia Niconsia, which led to the Brazilian receiving some pretty harsh criticism from Paul Scholes. However, the 22-year-old delivered an excellent response to those comments by becoming the first United player in Premier League history to score in each of his first three appearances in the league.
After receiving a deceptively simple pass from Martial in the back, Antony was able to open up his body and curl the ball around Pickford and into the bottom right corner of the net. Antony once more impressed with his speed and trickery, while Vitaly Mykolenko struggled to keep up with Antony's electric speed throughout the evening. He was a threat all evening with his pace coming from behind.
CHRISTIAN ERIKSEN
In spite of the fact that he did not score or provide an assist in United's victory over Everton, Eriksen dominated play in the middle of the field and provided further evidence as to why Ten Hag decided to sign him over the summer. The Denmark international exudes quality and kept the game moving while United dominated play in the second half of the match.
There were a lot of people who were skeptical when Christian Eriksen made the move to the Red Devils, but he is proving the skeptics wrong and his tactical intelligence makes him a perfect fit for the role of a "Ten Hag type" player. In the 74th minute, the 30-year-old had a golden opportunity to add his name to the scoresheet, but he blazed over the bar from just inside the box. This did not detract from an outstanding individual performance, however, as he had an excellent game overall.
LOSERS
. MARTIAL ANTHONY
After making an impact off the bench in games against Manchester City and Omonia Nicosia, Anthony Martial was given the opportunity to make his first start of the season. He took the place of Jadon Sancho in the starting XI. However, his evening came to an abrupt end because the Frenchman had to be replaced after only 29 minutes due to an injury. Martial had already left the United warm-up early and walked down the tunnel with what appeared to be a hip injury; however, he made the problem even worse while he was playing the game.
Ronaldo came on as a substitute for him and went on to score a goal, proving to Ten Hag why he should play a larger role in the team. Even though Martial was the one who set up Antony's equalizer, Ronaldo's goal and the rest of his performance could hurt Martial's chances of getting more playing time once he's healthy again.
JADON SANCHO
After starting all seven of Manchester United's Premier League games to start the season, Jadon Sancho did not travel with the team to Merseyside because of his poor play over the past few weeks. Marcus Rashford, fresh off an impressive cameo appearance on Thursday in Cyprus, moved to the left wing as a result of this, with Antony moving to the right and Martial continuing to play through the middle until he was taken off.
Although Sancho has scored three goals across all competitions this season, he wasn't at his best in either the Manchester derby or in Nicosia, whereas Martial excelled in both matches after coming off the bench. Sancho's goals came in all three of this season's matches. It's possible that Ten Hag prefers to use Rashford in that role, with a natural out-and-out striker playing up front. This is supported by the fact that Ten Hag decided to start him on the bench.
TYRELL MALACIA
Following a subpar performance in United's victory over Omonia on Thursday, Tyrell Malacia also did not make the trip to face Everton for the matchup between United and the Toffees. And he would see Luke Shaw produce an outstanding performance despite the left back's efforts to get back to his best form after an inconsistent year.
Shaw was one of United's best performers on the pitch and showed why Ten Hag was right to recall him to the starting XI in the Premier League for the first time since the loss at Brentford on August 13. Shaw showed why Ten Hag was right to recall him to the starting XI in the Premier League. Shaw showed why Ten Hag was right to recall him to the starting X The international player from England did a good job of neutralizing the threat posed by Anthony Gordon and didn't give the winger any time on the ball at all. It was a display that indicated Shaw could replace Malacia in the side, at least until the World Cup begins in November. It was a display that indicated Shaw could replace Malacia in the side.
Abiola Issa Mukaila 2 yrs
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