Manchester United hosted Manchester City in a lifeless derby clash at Old Trafford, where the initiative remained entirely unseized and the match ended goalless. Here are our player ratings from the game.
(A score of 6 is around average)
Andre Onana 5 – flapped hopelessly at a corner and was lucky his defenders helped him out, but otherwise did little wrong. Reacted smartly to a couple of Omar Marmoush shots but rarely tested.
Noussair Mazraoui 6 – showed a cool head when under pressure at the back where tidy footwork helped him out of tight corners. Gave the ball away too often.
Harry Maguire 5 – some poor distribution but defensively solid at the heart of the back three on his way back from injury. Replaced by Victor Lindelof.
Leny Yoro 7 – the pick of United’s centre-backs and by far the best at progressing the ball, although at times pushed his luck and gave it away. Not afraid to get stuck in physically either as he gets up to speed in the Premier League.
Diogo Dalot 7 – a typical display from the Portuguese full-back. Hardworking and not afraid to put in the hard yards getting forward as well as defending, but some brainless decision-making which could have proved costly.
Manuel Ugarte 4 – defensively decent but his limitations on the ball were obvious and he struggled to make an impact in the centre of the pitch. Saved by the system, which saw him share the load with Casemiro. Flashed a good chance wide before being replaced by Mason Mount.
Casemiro 5 – frequently involved and frequently frustrating. Threw himself around enthusiastically, but, one nice ball over the top aside, very wasteful in possession.
Dorgu 7 – swashbuckling showing from the youngster in his first Manchester derby. Caused problems in the final third and with a bit more confidence could have worked the goalkeeper. Another promising performance from the January arrival.
Bruno Fernandes 8.5 – confidence and class oozed from almost every touch he took. Wonderful to watch, his range of passing was particularly impressive and he was at the heart of everything good that United tried. Deserved to be on a winning team.
Rasmus Hojlund 4 – rinse and repeat from almost every game this season. Worked hard but barely touched the ball, and failed to make his rare touches count with some loose passing. Replaced by Joshua Zirkzee.
Alejandro Garnacho 6 – a bright attacking spark, especially in the first half, but still fails to beat his man too often. Missed the best chance of the first half and should have done better several times in the second.
Substitutes
Victor Lindelof 6 – first key action was to foul Marmoush in a dangerous area, but rallied for a run-of-the-mill defensive showing.
Mason Mount 7 – the forgotten man had a very good half-hour and showed both attacking flair and the high defensive work-rate which Ruben Amorim values so much. Good display to build on.
Joshua Zirkzee 8 – nearly made the breakthrough several times and was a huge upgrade on Hojlund in the middle of the front three. Sharp with his passing and constantly looked like making something happen, has to start the next game.
Featured image Michael Steele via Getty Images
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Joe Ponting
Joe has spent more than half his life writing about football and all of it following United. As a child he told a doctor his name was ‘Paul Scholes’, but could never pick a pass like him no matter how much he tried.
