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Manchester United captain Harry Maguire and midfielder duo Scott McTominay and Fred impressed in a crucial victory at Everton.
Harry Maguire’s dominating performance in Manchester United’s 3-1 win over Everton received praise from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who also praised Fred and Scott McTominay’s midfield partnership.
United bounced back from successive defeats to Arsenal and Istanbul Basaksehir with a vital victory at Goodison Park, alleviating some of the mounting pressure on Solskjaer.
Bernard put Everton ahead, but a quick double from Bruno Fernandes turned things around before the break.
Everton fought for the draw in the second half, but the contest was resolved in added time when Fernandes, who has now been involved in a Premier League record of 15 goals (10 scored, five assisted) in his first 10 away games in competition, overtook Edinson Cavani for his first goal for the United.
MAGUIRE LEADS THE UNITED DEFENSE
As Fernandes accelerated United’s attack, Captain Maguire had an excellent showing at the other end, holding his own against the league’s leading scorer, Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
Maguire was dominant in the air as Everton, still stripped of the suspended Richarlison, attempted to pick their often isolated striker, with the England defender making a tackle, an interception and seven punts, the most he has achieved in a league game this season.
After a difficult start to the season for Maguire, it was a display that delighted Solskjaer, who said at a press conference: “I thought Harry’s performance was excellent, of course.
“For me, against one of the best in the world in passing: Calvert-Lewin, with his timing in the air, his jump, his jump, his athleticism.
“I thought we defended very well against him. Really pleased with Harry, and the rest of them there.”
Having used a diamond in midfield in United’s loss to Arsenal last Sunday, Solskjaer switched to 4-2-3-1, with Fred and McTominay on double pivot.
The duo excelled, attempting 112 combined passes and making three tackles between them, with McTominay also intercepting two passes, a high game.
Fred had the most pass attempts (63) and completions (57) of any United player, with his 90.5 percent success rate the best among his starters.
“Scott and Fred have done great together, they are a great partnership.” said Solskjaer, who left Paul Pogba on the bench until the 82nd minute.
“Of course they didn’t play during the week, Scott played 45 minutes in Turkey, but you can see they had fresh legs.
“We had Bruno and he scored his goals, but Scott and Fred, With that energy, in that engine room, they are always key for us so that our creative players can move forward and create opportunities, show their magic.
“They are very disciplined and I am very happy with both of them.”
THE TOFFEES ARE STILL TAKING OFF AGAIN
While Solskjaer reveled in a greatly improved performance, Ancelotti stayed to reflect on a third consecutive league setback.
In November 2006, in Milan, was the last time Ancelotti endured such a streak, while Everton have conceded at least two goals in each of their last five league games.
“The problem was that after we scored we couldn’t defend well and they took advantage of it,” he added. Ancelotti told BT Sport.
“They were able to score easily. We said before the game that we had to defend better and we didn’t do well enough. We were slow behind, we have to improve.
“I hope that after the international break we will have a different form again. It is not just a problem for the defenders, it is for the whole team.
“I know how to handle difficulties, you have them every year. We can start again after the break, we are very bad at the moment but we started well.
Source: m.allfootballapp.com
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