FC Basel v Manchester United: Player ratings

Basel dump United out of the Champions League

Manchester United crashed out of the Champions League at the St. Jakob Arena on Wednesday evening as FC Basel picked up an unlikely victory against the English champions and marched into the knockout stages. Here are the player ratings from a cold and rainy evening in Switzerland.

FC BASEL

Yann Sommer (7.5): His handling was good and he kept United out time and again. Organized his back line superbly. Should have done better for Jones’s goal.

Aleksandar Dragovic (7): Part of an outstanding defensive setup, he looked assured on the ball and kept United at bay.

David Abraham (7.5): Terrific powerhouse performance by Dragovic who outmuscled Rooney easily and refused to let United through. Played his way out of trouble at times.

Joo-Ho Park (5.5): Had a torrid time against Nani as the Portuguese wizard kept beating him. Failed to deal with the threat of Smalling too and will be grateful for Rooney’s miss in the first half.

Markus Steinhofer (7): Kept Young out with consummate ease. The fullback was a real threat going forward but had a heart in mouth moment when he almost scored a crazy own goal in the second half.

Granit Xhaka (7.5): Displayed an exteremly impressive work rate and looked a genuine threat on either flank (as he kept switching with Shaqiri).

Cabral (7): His job was to break up United’s play in the middle of the park and he did so on many occasions. Was caught out of position a couple of times but United failed to capitalise.

Fabian Frei (7): Like the rest of his team mates, worked very hard to press United and deny them any space. Didn’t fashion any goal scoring opportunity as his job was to shut out United’s midfield.

Xherdan Shaqiri (8.5): What a gem this boy is. He was easily the man of the match as he tormented United for 90 minutes. Ran rings around the United midfield and defence and deserved a goal. A real talent and Basel will have a hard time holding onto him next summer.

Marco Streller (7): Wasn’t involved in the game much but was there when it counted as latched onto an error by De Gea and volleyed the ball into an empty net for Basel’s opener.

Alexander Frei (7.5): After scoring 2 goals in the reverse fixture at Old Trafford, Basel’s leading scorer this term netted again 10 minutes from time to seal the win. Worked hard for his goal and finished with ease when the ball came to him.

Subs:

Genseric Kusunga (N/A): Came on for Frei in the closing stages.

Scott Chipperfield (N/A): Came on for Xhaka late on but didn’t get involved.

Valentin Stocker (N/A): Replaced Shaqiri in injury time.

MANCHESTER UNITED

David De Gea (6): Was at fault for the opening goal. Should have caught the ball but got an uncertain foot to it and diverted it straight into the path of Streller who scored. Looked nervy and his kicking was erratic.

Chris Smalling (6.5): At fault for the second goal as he went to sleep at the back post. Otherwise it was a decent outing by the English international as he dealt with the threat of Xhaka well.

Patrice Evra (5.5): Was beaten time and again by Shaqiri and Xhaka as the two youngsters wreaked havoc in the United defense.

Rio Ferdinand (6.5): Certainly did not look like a defender whose good years are behind him. Shut out Frei superbly at times and put in a few good tackles.

Nemanja Vidic (6.5): He looked assured at the back and didn’t lose a single header before getting injured. It looked extremely serious at the time and Manchester United have a major problem on their hands if their skipper is ruled out with a long term injury.

Phil Jones (6.5): His job in central midfield was to track the run of Shaqiri and he did that to a certain extent. Scored a late consolation for the visitors.

Park Ji-Sung (6): Not his greatest night as he lacked creativity. Put in a good shift but failed to provide the telling ball. Replaced by Macheda.

Ryan Giggs (6.5): It fell to him to be the playmaker and he had a decent outing. Pulled the strings in the second half but except one outstanding through ball to Rooney, his threat was nullified by the Basel defense.

Ashley Young (5.5): After returning from injury, Young has not settled into the side. His crossing was off again and was hauled off for Welbeck just after the hour mark.

Nani (8): The only United player who threatened Basel on a regular basis. Outstanding on the right wing as he gave Park a nightmare. Beat him man consistently but failed to beat the Basel stopper.

Wayne Rooney (6.5): Extremely frustrating evening for United’s talisman as his goal drought continues. Cut a lonely figure up front and had a couple of pot shots but never anything that threatened Sommer’s goal.

Subs:

Jonny Evans (6): Replaced Vidic towards the end of the first half. His passing and distribution was poor but defensively did well.

Danny Welbeck (6): Came on for Young just after the hour mark but didn’t make much of an impact.

Federico Macheda (6): Replaced Park in the closing moments and missed a glorious opportunity to score when the goal was gaping. Jones bailed him out however by scoring from the rebound.