In what turned out to be an out and out thrashing of sorts, Manchester United beat Feyenoord 4-0 on the fifth match day of the UEFA Europa League. It was a do or die match for the Red Devils, as anything other than a win would have made it very hard for them to make it to the knockout stages of Europe’s second tier club competition.
However, Jose Mourinho and his men turned on the heat on the team from Netherlands in style, as goals from Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard and an own goal sealed a convincing win for them at Old Trafford.
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Despite dominating in their matches against Stoke, Burnley and Arsenal, United were unable to gain all three points due to a combination of bad luck and lack of decisiveness upfront. This win will however, give them a huge boost as they take on a grilling set of games in the forthcoming weeks.
Here are the 5 takeaways from the game:
#1 Wayne Rooney has still got it in him
Rooney is a player who has always divided fans’ opinions about him. On one hand, he is one of the finest players United ever had, on the other one he is a now-lethargic, worn out footballer who is past his best days. Very recently, he was ridiculed and heavily criticised after drunk pictures of him emerged, while he was on England duty.
However, the former Everton man answered all his critics by playing a sublime game yesterday and edging closer to Sir Bobby Charlton’s record goal haul for United. He started off in the number 10 position but frequently interchanged his position with Zlatan and Mkhitaryan, which made life extremely difficult for the Feyenoord defence.
He started off the movement for the first goal by exchanging some smart passes with Ibrahimovic, and then finished the move by dinking it over the top of Brad Jones. It was his first goal at Old Trafford since May and his 39th in Europe, which coincidentally made him United’s highest goalscorer in all European competitions.
He was subbed off in the 75th minute, but he had managed to kill the match off by then by providing a sweet assist to Juan Mata for the second goal as well. Overall, it was a superb comeback for the captain, and we hope to see similar performances from him in the future.
#2 Sergio Romero is a pretty good understudy for De Gea
While David de Gea is undoubtedly United’s number one, there has been a lot of deliberations about who can be a worthy replacement for the Spaniard when he needs to be rested or is injured. Sergio Romero made his third start for United this season last night, and he showed why Jose trusted him to deliver in such a crucial tie.
The Argentine didn’t have a lot to do throughout the game but proved more than capable when called upon.
He made sure that his team went home with a clean sheet by making a spectacular double save in the first half. First, he blocked Rick Karsdorp's shot and then stuck out his right leg to divert Dirk Kuyt's follow-up wide. It was Feyenoord’s only meaningful attempt on goal in the game, but if he had failed to save them, it could have been a different story.
#3 Pogba and Carrick are the perfect partners in midfield
An interesting statistic : United have not lost any of the 8 games Michael Carrick has featured in so far this season. They have won 7 of them and drawn just the one. Before the game, one doubted whether the veteran would start, given he had made appeared against Arsenal on Saturday.
However, Jose Mourinho started off the English international yesterday night as well, and he showed his class once again. In the first half, he couldn’t influence the game that much but he came on his own in the second, providing Pogba the necessary license to go on marauding runs upfront.
However, at 35 years of age, the former Spurs man needs to be used carefully and sparingly, and that could turn out to be the Portuguese manager’s biggest challenge. Morgan Schneiderlin, anyone?
#4 Feyenoord appeared listless
Feyenoord, as a team offered next to nothing going forward. They seemed like a team who were completely underwhelmed by the occasion, and could hardly stitch a couple of passes together.
Their best chance fell to Dirk Kuyt in the middle of the first half, but unfortunately, it was thwarted by the superb Romero. Other than the occasional interchange between Elia and Jorgensen, the Dutch team found it hard to move the ball and lost possession of it whenever they entered the United half.
Moreover, their insistence in sitting deep and defending meant there was hardly any pressure on United’s midfield, a luxury that will not be afforded in the upcoming games against West Ham United.
#5 Mkhitaryan may finally kick start his United career
There was intense media pressure on Jose to start Mkhitaryan in the game against Arsenal, but the United manager did not do so, saying “he would struggle” against the Gunners. As such, there was a lot of fanfare on social media when the team lists were released and it was noted that the Armenian would start for just the second time in his United career.
While he did impress overall, however, there is plenty more left to be desired of him. While his first touch, his involvement in almost every attack and his passing would fetch him top marks, his laziness and inability to close down defenders is something that definitely irks you as a fan.
He seems lively and comfortable on the ball, and his efforts were certainly laudable, but he has a long way to go. Mourinho believes in the former Borussia Dortmund player, but will want to see more effort from him without the ball.
