Player Ratings: United 1 Arsenal 1 : Smalling Commands At The Back

De Gea – Strong in the air and quick off his line, the Spaniard demonstrated once again why he’s so sought after. Replaced after picking up a hip injury. 8
Valencia – Pushed high into the Arsenal half and ran at players repeatedly. 7
Smalling – Took the captain’s armband and performed like a leader should do. Made numerous last-ditch tackles and key interceptions. 8
Jones – This performance will forever be remembered as the time he fell over his own feet and head-butted the ball. 5
Rojo – Caught out of position once or twice, with one leading to a last second clearance ahead of Ramsey. 6
Blind – Offered some threat going forward but once again failing to offer a proper shield for the defensive line. 6
Mata – Some instances of genius that were too few and far between. 6
Herrera – Passed the ball really well and worked hard too. Took his goal beautifully with a side footed finish passed the goalkeeper. 7
Fellaini – Wondered across the midfield and brought others into play doing so. Involved in the United goal. 7
Young – Yet another outstanding performance from the Englishman. Bullied the Arsenal defence as he shifted from one side to the other, before crossing. Set up the United goal. 8
Falcao – Started the game but failed to impose himself. Ball bobbled off him too often and offered little else. 5
Subs:
van Persie – Couldn’t get himself into the game. 5
Blackett – Responsible for the Walcott goal. 5
Valdes – N/A
Other:
Louis van Gaal – A great first fifty minutes that turned sour once United took their foot off the gas. The team played well but never really threatened in the second half, besides Ashley Young who’s pretty much carrying the entire attacking responsibility. The balance of the team wasn’t helped either by three forced substitutions. Overall, a meaningless game so no point getting worked up about it. We’re off to play in the Champions League – that’s all that matters. Mission accomplished. 6
Referee: N/A



About Steve Ferguson 886 Articles
Steve Ferguson had taken over & re-branded The Faithful MUFC website back in the summer of 2014 and is now the owner and editor of the site. Steve, from Ashton-Under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, is a 35-year-old life long Manchester United fan, travelling over the globe to see the Reds play. Steve has been lucky enough to be at both the 1999 and 2008 Champions League finals, seeing Manchester United lift the biggest trophy in the World, none more exciting than that faithful night in Barcelona in 99. The website is a blog, but also hopes to deliver the latest Manchester United news from around the internet too, linked up with our growing twitter account which is @TheFaithfulMUFC, give it a follow as we will follow you back as soon as we can.

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