Manchester United u21s lost their opening match of the Premier League 2 campaign away to Arsenal. Here are our player ratings for the match.
Read the detailed match report of all the action here.
(A score of 6 is around average)
Elyh Harrison – 5 – It’s unfair to say he was really at fault for the goals, apart from accidentally knocking one in, and he made one good save. Made some good passes, particularly a couple of raking long balls to Amass on the left wing, but also nearly gave a goal away with a wayward pass while outside his box.
James Nolan – 5 – Always looked like he was fighting a battle he couldn’t win as he dealt with Arsenal’s quick attackers. Actually looked better when he pushed into midfield for a bit after going down to 10 men.
Sonny Aljofree – 4.5 – The skipper on the night but ultimately he couldn’t marshal the backline or stop Arsenal from getting into the box on his side. Played one very good good diagonal ball but other than that his passing was slow and lacking sharpness, like much of the side.
Tyler Fredricson – 5 – Made a number of good tackles while charging out from the back but the rustiness from his long term injury showed in his positioning and sharpness to react to Arsenal’s quick attacks.
Harry Amass – 6.5 – Near enough the lone bright spot for United, he had an exemplary opening half hour with extreme composure on the ball while playing out from the back. At one point in the first half he had to change his shirt as Arsenal could only rip it off him as he spun off challenges. But he faded as the second half went on, with little to work with and with Arsenal bringing the play to the opposite side.
Tommy Rowe – 3.5 – Not a debut to remember and very much looked like a coach on the pitch, but not in a good way. Rather, he just looked like a retired player who was well off the pace, diving into a number of challenges late and simply unable keep up with the speed of play on Arsenal’s third goal. With waning physical attributes, he lacked the composed presence of Tom Huddlestone last season.
Ruben Curley – 4.5 – The best of the midfield three to offer a presence, but not by much and wasn’t able to make anything happen with the ball.
Ethan Williams – 4 – Nothing really came off for him on the night, he didn’t threaten his fullback, didn’t link up well in the final third and he couldn’t provide his usual quality deliveries into the box. Capped it off by getting into an off the ball tussle which resulted in a straight red card.
Sam Mather – 4 – Indicative of United’s performance, he was a number 10 that was rarely to be seen.
Ethan Ennis – 5 – Ran down blind alleys far too often and didn’t link well with the team around him despite Amass often showing an option. Did well when given the chance through on goal though to pull one back in the second half.
Ethan Wheatley – 6 – Came alive in the final ten minutes with an excellently taken goal after receiving the ball on the turn in the box. Had a few bright moments with Ogunneye late on down the right wing but was too lackadaisical for the majority of the match with sloppy passes and ball control.
Substitutes
Habeeb Ogunneye – 6 – Came in and offered more thrust on the right side with a willingness to take the ball and get up and down the wing.
Malachi Sharpe – 5 – Not for a lack of trying but with United down a man, he largely chased shadows around.
Finley McAllister – 6 – Showed fight in the midfield and kept it simple in possession which saw United enjoy their best spells late on despite being a man down.
Louis Jackson – 6 – Only on for the final 10 minutes but made a good clearing header and tackle.
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