Southampton 1-1 Man Utd: Player ratings as wasteful Red Devils fall to draw

Greenwood's goal earned Man Utd a point
Greenwood's goal earned Man Utd a point / Robin Jones/Getty Images
facebooktwitterreddit

Manchester United matched Arsenal's top-flight record of 27 away games without defeat but could only manage a 1-1 draw with Southampton on Sunday afternoon.

United were overwhelmingly dominant early on and could easily have taken the lead from one of their many free-kicks, but Southampton grew into the game as the half progressed and opened the scoring on the half-hour mark.

Bruno Fernandes gave possession away sloppily on the wing and the ball found its way to Che Adams, whose strike deflected off Fred and nestled into the bottom corner to give the Saints the lead at the break.

United needed just nine minutes after the interval to level things up. Paul Pogba caused havoc in the box and dropped the ball off to Mason Greenwood, whose scuffed strike found its way through Alex McCarthy and into the back of the net.

Both sides pushed for the go-ahead goal, with David de Gea pulling out an excellent save to deny Adam Armstrong late on, but neither side could do enough to secure all three points.


SOUTHAMPTON PLAYER RATINGS

1. Goalkeeper & defenders

Mohammed Salisu
Salisu had an excellent game / James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images

Alex McCarthy (GK) - 5/10 - Looked a little uncertain when coming out to claim crosses and was nowhere near good enough for the equaliser. Really sloppy.

Tino Livramento (RB) - 7/10 - Had to do a bit more defending in this game but handled everything so well. Looked powerful and confident, and made a handful of crucial blocks to keep Southampton alive early on.

Jack Stephens (CB) - 7/10 - A few awkward passes on the edge of his area, but otherwise did well to repel United's attacks. Completely mauled Fernandes for the opening goal and pressed so well all game.

Mohammed Salisu (CB) - 7/10 - Made a handful of last-ditch challenges when Southampton were struggling and then led by example throughout. Marked Martial out of the game.

Romain Perraud (LB) - 6/10 - Didn't do anything particularly wrong but looked uncomfortable for most of the game. Gave some sloppy free-kicks away but tried to make up for it with some good overlapping runs.

2. Midfielders

Moussa Djenepo
Djenepo looked very dangerous / James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images

Theo Walcott (RM) - 5/10 - Pressed with real determination and desire to help keep United at bay, but offered very little with the ball at his feet. Taken off at half-time.

Oriol Romeu (CM) - 6/10 - Made some awful decisions early on and took far too long to get going, but eventually figured himself out. Did well to subdue Matic and Fred.

James Ward-Prowse (CM) - 6/10 - Sloppier from corners than you'd expect. Looked to be lacking his usual composure and found United's midfield press a little too much at times.

Moussa Djenepo (LM) - 7/10 - Reckless and brilliant at the same time. Threw his body at everyone and everything and looked really dangerous throughout, but lacked a little composure at times.

3. Forwards

Che Adams (ST) - 7/10 - Got some good fortune with the goal but absolutely won't care. Pressed United's back line well, defended incredibly and deserved his luck.

Adam Armstrong (ST) - 6/10 - Linked up well with Adams and made some excellent runs which were almost too clever for his own teammates. Should have done far better with a brilliant chance deep in the second half.

4. Substitutes

Mohammed Salisu, Jan Bednarek
Bednarek helped off the bench / Robin Jones/Getty Images

Jan Bednarek - 6/10

Ibrahima Diallo - 6/10

Kyle Walker-Peters - N/A


MANCHESTER UNITED PLAYER RATINGS

5. Goalkeeper & defenders

David de Gea
De Gea had to be alert / James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images

David de Gea (GK) - 6/10 - Helpless for the opening goal but pulled off an excellent save to deny Armstrong midway through the second. Stopped a certain goal.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka (RB) - 5/10 - Surprisingly unconvincing in the tackle and really struggled with Armstrong's pace. Looked just as panicked with the ball at his feet.

Victor Lindelof (CB) - 5/10 - Some sloppy passes from start to finish. Didn't have the speed to keep up with Southampton's fluid forward line and needed extra help from Matic.

Harry Maguire (CB) - 5/10 - Didn't enjoy dealing with Southampton's press at all and seemed to be panicking with his long balls. Plenty of sloppy passes and some stinking challenges at times.

Luke Shaw (LB) - 6/10 - Played some dangerous crosses for United's forwards but couldn't link up with those around them. Did well against Walcott but struggled against Livramento.

6. Midfielders

Nemanja Matic (DM) - 5/10 - A tricky one. Did well as an auxiliary centre-back but that meant he lacked in midfield. Slowed the game down almost constantly.

Fred (DM) - 5/10 - Didn't offer enough at either end of the field. Particularly sloppy in attack, where he did his best to derail any momentum United were trying to build.

Mason Greenwood (RM) - 7/10 - Looked very dangerous on the wing and even more so when he shifted to striker to replace Martial. A scuffed finish but they all count.

Bruno Fernandes (AM) - 6/10 - Linked up very well with Pogba but didn't really offer enough on the ball. A little underwhelming for someone of his quality.

Paul Pogba (LM) - 7/10 - Baller. Ran the game from whichever position he found himself in, picking out perfect passes and burning defenders with some gorgeous dribbling.

7. Forward

Anthony Martial
A poor performance from Martial / James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images

Anthony Martial (ST) - 4/10 - Non-existent yet again. Offered next to nothing in the first half and unsurprisingly hooked in the second while United were trying to get on top of the game.

8. Substitutes

Jadon Sancho
Sancho came off the bench / James Williamson - AMA/Getty Images

Jadon Sancho - 6/10

Scott McTominay - 6/10

Jesse Lingard - N/A