Man Utd's best and worst players in draw with Tottenham

  • Man Utd played out a 2-2 draw with Spurs at Old Trafford on Sunday
  • Rasmus Hojlund opened the scoring for the hosts
  • Marcus Rashford broke an eight-month drought in front of his own fans
Marcus Rashford (left) and Rasmus Hojlund were Man Utd's stand-out players
Marcus Rashford (left) and Rasmus Hojlund were Man Utd's stand-out players / Naomi Baker/GettyImages
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Erik ten Hag made it abundantly clear what quality he demanded of his players ahead of Manchester United’s Premier League meeting with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.

"If you want to perform, you need hungry players," Ten Hag declared. "We need personalities and players who are very hungry to fight for the badge and this club."

Based upon the disjointed display at Old Trafford, some players had clearly cottoned on to the message quicker than others. Here are those who will have left Ten Hag delighted and disappointed during the 2-2 draw.


Man Utd's best player vs Tottenham

Marcus Rashford: 8/10

Marcus Rashford, Pedro Porro
Marcus Rashford ended his Old Trafford drought on Sunday / Catherine Ivill/GettyImages

After 234 days, 14 games and 32 shots, Marcus Rashford finally broke his scoring drought at Old Trafford. Playing with the streak of arrogance that underpins Rashford's best spells, the England international had the confidence to continually take on Pedro Porro, dusting himself off to charge at the full-back rather than passing the burden of penetration to a teammate.

Rashford's cathartic goal, celebrated as though a weight had been lifted, epitomised the winger's determined drive. Porro was stood between United's number ten and a return pass from Rasmus Hojlund but Rashford buffeted the full-back out of the way, leaving Guglielmo Vicario clutching at thin air as the ball scuttled between Micky van de Ven's legs and into the bottom corner.

Honourable mention

Rasmus Hojlund: 7/10

More than half of the season has already elapsed and Sunday was the first time that Hojlund and Rashford have scored in the same game. The fleet-footed duo bounced off one another as practically the only two cogs in this United machine that span with any fluency at Old Trafford.

Hojlund's winner against Aston Villa on Boxing Day has injected an extra layer of confidence into the Dane's game. Where he had been previously taking an extra touch to set himself, Hojlund thrashed the opening goal of the match into the roof of the net without a second's hesitation.


Man Utd worst player vs Tottenham

Christian Eriksen: 3/10

Rodrigo Bentancur, Christian Eriksen
Christian Eriksen did not enjoy his best evening against his former club / Catherine Ivill/GettyImages

Christian Eriksen missed United's routine cup victory over Wigan on Monday through illness and played Sunday's match with all the grace of a peaky patient.

A victim of Ten Hag's man-marking system, Eriksen spent the contest taking two steps towards and swiftly away from the white shirt that briefly breezed in and out of his general vicinity. That Ten Hag left Eriksen toiling away for as long as 58 minutes was a surprise.

Dishonourable mention

Andre Onana: 4/10

After all that fuss, Andre Onana may have been bested served to join up with Cameroon ahead of their Africa Cup of Nations opener on Monday.

United and their goalkeeper convinced his nation's federation to let their first-choice custodian line up at Old Trafford but he didn’t provide much of a presence. When the ball was swung in from one of Tottenham’s multitude of corners, Onana may as well have been watching on from the Ivory Coast. Through no good work of his own, Onana only conceded once from a Spurs set piece.


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