Manchester United held on to secure a nervy 2-1 win against Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday’s late start.
United fell behind after Alex Iwobi’s great long-range curler found the net, but came back strong and goals from Antony and substitute Cristiano Ronaldo meant United went into half-time ahead.
It was a record night in terms of goalscoring for United. The Brazilian winger has already scored in all three Premier League games since his arrival from Ajax, while United’s number 7 scored his 700th goal for the club, an astonishing feat.
Brilliance of the united trio
They had to hold on in the second half when the Toffees lobbed aerials into the box for their tall forwards to attack, but United defended resolutely and the win means United move up to fifth place.
Questions were raised regarding the players’ mentality to respond to adversity after their derby and struggles against Omonia Nicosia in the Europa League.
Erik ten Hag: “The team’s reaction was good. That was one of our goals: to deal with setbacks.” #MUFC
— United Zone (@ManUnitedZone_) October 9, 2022
And they responded by coming back from a goal down and putting their bodies on the line when it mattered towards the end of the game.
And the fire burned brightest among the players who found it difficult to go under Erik ten Hag.
The Dutch manager made some significant changes, including a long-awaited start for Casemiro and Luke Shaw, while Anthony Martial’s injury early in the first half gave Ronaldo his much-deserved break.
All three have not played as much as they would have liked and fans and pundits have frequently called for the Brazilian to start matches.
And he made the mistake that led Frank Lampard’s team to take the lead and was frequently pressured by the opposition when he had the ball.
But the former Real Madrid did not lower his head and frequently interrupted the game, made crucial interceptions and his assist for Ronaldo’s 700th goal was perfect.
Squad getting stronger
Shaw has found himself on the bench since the arrival of Tyrell Malacia. But after a couple of disappointing performances, the England international finally got a chance to impress the boss and he did very well.
His recovery runs were fantastic, he was a consistent output on offense and he was solid in his defensive work. His performance had shadows of 2020-21 when the arrival of Alex Telles forced Shaw to up his game.
Ronaldo’s struggles have been well documented this season, but the Portuguese silenced his critics and sent a message to his coach by scoring what turned out to be the winner.
Aside from his finely taken goal, he pressed intelligently and was a consistent outlet as United tried to hang on to the ball in the second half.
With Martial injured again and with the games getting faster and faster, Ronaldo’s confidence will get a huge boost and that will be music to Ten Hag’s ears.
Ten Hag is slowly building up an action-hungry and action-hungry squad, and that will bode well for the Red Devils as they try to negotiate a packed and tough October schedule.
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