Manchester United 1 Everton 0
This was a victory derived from the youth and zest of Marcus Rashford, Timothy Fosu-Mensah and Anthony Martial, who combined for the latter to score a sweet winner that ensures Manchester United maintain pressure on Manchester City in the race for the final Champions League berth.
After West Ham United drew on Saturday with Crystal Palace, Louis van Gaal’s side took full advantage to leapfrog over them into fifth place with only seven matches remaining.
United were fair value for this win, though they hardly convinced that the defining phase of a rollercoaster campaign will feature a romp home to the maximum 21 points and closing total of 75 that would surely secure the top-four finish they crave.
The afternoon began with the South Stand being renamed after Sir Bobby Charlton and the injured Wayne Rooney bashfully waving a red flag along with the rest of the home support to greet this tribute to one of the club’s bona fide legends.
The on-field stuff commenced after Van Gaal named the same XI that won the 171st Mancunian derby before the international break. It meant that day’s hero, Rashford, continuing as the No9, with Juan Mata and Martial either side of Jesse Lingard in the attacking trident behind. Van Gaal likes this combination. Rashford, Martial and Lingard offer hunger and pace and Mata streetwise creativity.
The best early chance United carved out came via slick interplay between Lingard and Martial, in which the former laid off the ball to the latter and he banged a shot at Joel Robles’s goal that required a Leighton Baines deflection to go wide.
While referee, Andre Marriner, did not give the corner, United had earlier threatened from a clever kick from the left quadrant. This had Morgan Schneiderlin pea-rolling over a delivery that fooled Everton’s defence and found Marcos Rojo, though the left-back failed to finish from near goal.
United always seem a more dynamic force when Schneiderlin is one of Van Gaal’s two central midfielders, an impression confirmed by their 57 per cent win rate in all competitions when he is named, compared to the 35 per cent return when he is not.
Everton had begun by swarming over United. In this period, Gerard Deulofeu was their most potent option. Twice the Spaniard dismantled the home defence by skating beyond Rojo but each time his side failed to profit.
There was further wastefulness when Romelu Lukaku expertly held off Daley Blind near the United area but failed with a regulation pass that missed the onrushing Aaron Lennon and allowed the Dutch defender to clean up.
Roberto Martínez dropped Muhamed Besic and Ramiro Funes Mori from the side that was downed 2-0 by Arsenal at Goodison Park a fortnight ago, instead selecting John Stones and Deulofeu. Given the array of talent – led by Lukaku, Ross Barkley, Stones, Seamus Coleman and Phil Jagielka – available to Martínez, it seemed a poor return for his team to arrive on 38 points from 29 outings.
Yet as the opening half wore on and United pinned Everton back the clue to this low yield was in the lack of control offered by a midfield manned by Barkley, James McCarthy and Tom Cleverley.
Instead Schneiderlin and Michael Carrick provided the platform on which Martial, Lingard, Mata and Rashford buzzed in and around the Toffees’ area and when Marriner blew for the break United were unlucky to still be level and Everton fortunate to be so.
A stark fact, though, was that this was the 10th league game of 15 here that arrived at the interval goalless. As United began the second half hoping to break the deadlock and in search of their 1,000th Premier League goal in this stadium, Fosu-Mensah replaced Rojo and he popped up early on to deliver a cross.
When United finally made the breakthrough the Dutchman was pivotal in the move. Fosu-Mensah had swapped with Matteo Darmian, who moved into Rojo’s former berth as the 18-year-old operated at right-back. It was from here that Fosu-Mensah again roved forward as Mata trapped the ball neatly and passed inside to Rashford. The striker’s backheel into Fosu-Mensah was as clever as the cross that found Martial at the far post and he tapped home for his 13th of the term.
Jagielka came close to instantly puncturing the cocktail of joy and relief that swirled around Old Trafford following Martial’s strike. The visiting captain rose highest from a corner to beat David de Gea but the bar saved United.
As the end neared Fosu-Mensah did the same when Everton pressed hard, superbly turning away a dangerous Coleman cross and United hung on.
On Sunday Van Gaal’s men are at Tottenham Hotspur. They hope to deflate the title challenge of Spurs, and keep up their bid to qualify for the European Cup. It promises to be another close affair.
(Guardian service)
