We give our marks to Louis van Gaal’s side after their FA Cup fourth round trip to Cambridge United.
Manchester United will face an FA Cup fourth round replay after they were stunning held to a 0-0 draw by League Two outfit Cambridge United at The Abbey this evening, with Richard Money’s stubborn side putting up fine opposition.
SEE MORE:
Man Utd manager and goalkeeper caught up in drama
Eric Cantona’s infamous kung-fu kick in lego
Manchester United transfer news
Despite fielding the likes of Angel di Maria, Radamel Falcao and Michael Carrick from the off in Cambridgeshire, United struggled to unlock the door and will now face a second game against the League Two side. This is how we rated van Gaal’s men:
GK) David de Gea 6 – Had one or two nervous moments from set pieces in the first half as Cambridge looked to use their height advantage, but otherwise rarely needed.
RB) Antonio Valencia 6 – Looked more comfortable when van Gaal switched his formation to allow him to play as a wing back, but the Ecuadorian’s final ball wasn’t good enough.
CB) Phil Jones 7 – Actually played pretty well and was intelligent in his defensive positioning. His distribution was shaky, however, and the sight of him taking corners was again bizarre.
CB) Marcos Rojo 6 – Got stuck into Cambridge in the first half and showed he was up for the fight but, in truth, that was perhaps just what the hosts wanted.
LB) Daley Blind 6 – Didn’t have the pace to get up in support of attacks when playing at left back, but uses the ball intelligently and rarely gives it away.
DCM) Michael Carrick 6 – Van Gaal desperately tried to create the conditions for Carrick to be able to control the game by switching his system, but the England man was always more peripheral than his manager wanted.
CM) Marouane Fellaini 5 – Booked early on and, for a player who would ordinarily relish a physical battle, Fellaini was often on the edge of the game and unable to impose himself.
CM) Adnan Januzaj 6 – Busy and quick, Januzaj got into some good positions but often wasted them with a poor ball into the box. Clearly still a work in progress.
ACM) Angel di Maria 5 – The United record signing had something of a nightmare in just his second taste of the FA Cup, the Argentine was horribly wasteful in the final third.
SC) James Wilson 5 – The teenager was given a chance to impress in the absence of Wayne Rooney but never got into the game.
SC) Radamel Falcao 5 – United certainly didn’t play to their expensive centre forward’s needs, but the Colombian was still not good enough and saw one glorious chance saved by Chris Dunn.
SUB) Ander Herrera 6 – As with many of his teammates, was too content to play the simple ball and retain possession than look to force the issue and unlock Cambridge.
SUB) Robin van Persie 5 – Thrown on to make the difference and, whilst van Persie is clearly dangerous, he missed the perfect chance that did fall his way.
MAN) Louis van Gaal 5 – Won’t be happy with his team’s lethargic performance, at least until the closing stages. United had more control once he switched back to his favoured 3-5-2 system, but couldn’t find the crucial difference.
