Jonas Olsson’s second-half goal was enough to consign Manchester United to its third straight defeat. Robin van Persie’s return to Louis van Gaal’s starting XI was completely overshadowed by a late penalty miss.
Manchester United
David De Gea – 6: Solid enough. Could not do anything to stop the goal following a wicked deflection.
Antonio Valencia – 5: Found it difficult to create incisions with a deep-lying West Brom defence ahead of him.
Patrick McNair – 4: Conceded the free kick for the winner which adds to his poor recent form. Squandered a decent headed chance also.
Chris Smalling – 6: Had very little to do with United so dominant in possession. Stuck to his task well.
Daley Blind – 5: Has been excellent when used at left full-back, but the Dutchman lacked his usual bite in possession and tackling on this occasion.
Ander Herrera – 4: Struggled with his distribution all game, albeit playing out of position. Looks a much better player when alongside Michael Carrick.
Juan Mata – 5: Tidy as usual on the ball, but could not summon his usual magic despite his side dominating possession.
Marouane Fellaini – 7: Man-marked all game, unable to make any real impact. Gave his side a focal point after half-time.
Wayne Rooney – 5: Added little to a midfield that has lost the quick ball movement seen in previous months.
Ashley Young – 7: United’s best player, particularly in the first half. Ran at Craig Dawson and was able to combine well with his team-mates.
Robin van Persie – 5: Looked bright in the first-half upon his return, but the missed penalty undid much of that good initial work.
Substitutes
Angel Di Maria – 5: Replaced Blind on 63 minutes and nearly grabbed a late equaliser. Struggled in possession as he has previously this season.
Radamel Falcao – N/A
https://youtu.be/qA7KBWlb8NY
West Bromwich Albion
Boaz Myhill – 10: Made a string of excellent saves, most notably van Persie’s penalty.
Gareth McAuley – 8: One of the best penalty box defenders in the league. Repelled a large number of crosses, both low and high as United pushed for parity.
Jonas Olsson – 8: Lucky goal aside, Olsson was excellent in denying United’s forwards space. Advanced well beyond his defensive line at times to allay pressure.
Chris Dawson – 6: Bullied by Ashley Young, but remained determined throughout the entire contest
even when outnumbered.
Joleon Lescott: Nullified the threat of Mata on West Brom’s left. Looks to be enjoying playing under Tony Pulis.
Darren Fletcher – 7: Won the foul that led to the goal. His team’s performance perfectly typified Fletcher’s struggles in recent times – they refused to give up.
Chris Brunt – 6: His wayward free kick was turned in by Olsson. Otherwise, Brunt put in a workmanlike shift on the left to keep Valencia accountable.
Claudio Yacob – 7: Screened the defence excellently and restricted the influence of Fellaini. Performances like this show why Pulis rates him so highly.
Craig Gardiner – 5: Chased around United’s midfielders all game, offered nothing going forward but remained focussed.
Youssuf Mulumbu – 6: Put in his usual mountain of work in the centre of the park. Like Gardiner, much of his work was pressurising United’s passing game.
Saido Berahino – 4: Conceded the penalty for a needless hand-ball and could not get into the game, albeit with minimal service.
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Substitutes
Andre Wisdom, Chris Baird and Brown Ideye were all introduced after the 70 minute mark and receive the rating of N/A.
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Chris Dawson??? CHRIS Dawson!