Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United: Player ratings from a thriller at the Emirates | OneFootball

It was a Premier League classic between one team that never wanted to defend and another that completely forgot how to for most of the game.

Here are how the players rated in Manchester United’s wild 3-1 victory over Arsenal at the Emirates.

Arsenal

Petr Cech — 6/10

Not much he could have done about the goals and considering the fact that his team conceded three of them, he had very few saves to make.

Shkodran Mustafi — 4/10

Came off early on after playing a role in the concession of the first two goals but he was probably thankful for his injury. A shocker from Mustafi.

Nacho Monreal — 5/10

Struggled with Romelu Lukaku and the pace and power of the Manchester United counter-attack.

Laurent Koscielny — 4/10

The mistake for the opener was the kind of thing you’d expect from a nervous 19-year-old making his debut, not a 32-year-old veteran with 300 appearances for Arsenal. Then, he was brushed aside by Pogba for the third goal — again looking like a frail teenager.

Granit Xhaka — 5/10

Active enough but seemed oblivious to the fact that he was supposed to protect the threat from the Manchester United counter. He left oceans of space for Paul Pogba and company.

Aaron Ramsey — 7/10

He had to gamble as soon as Arsenal went 2-0 down, making runs into the box and getting sharp touches. Got his reward with a memorable assist, if he meant it.

Sead Kolasinac — 6/10

Probably not his type of game, with a little more nuance required from the wide areas given how deep Manchester United sat.

Héctor Bellerín — 6/10

Provided energy and directness down the right side but didn’t offer a lot of quality when he got into good areas.

Alexandre Lacazette — 7/10

Got his goal and worked hard to create angles and danger in the penalty box. Had made himself right at home at the Emirates, which is an encouraging sign for Arsenal.

Alexis Sánchez — 7/10

Willing as always, dropping into the deep positions that he likes to be in to pick up the ball and cause danger, as he did for the goal. However, you have to question whether he could be even more dangerous by trying to play closer to the Manchester United goal and operate in amongst the defence rather than in front of it

Mesut Özil — 7/10

Some will criticise him as too peripheral but Özil was clever as ever in his passes around the Manchester United penalty area to shift the defence. So many Arsenal chances are indirectly created by the German.

Substitutes:

Alex Iwobi — 6/10

Brought something of a spark to the game but ultimately didn’t provide enough incision.

Danny Welbeck — Not rated

Olivier Giroud — Not rated

Manchester United

David de Gea — 9/10

Enormous. One of the best performances we will see from a goalkeeper this season as he equalled a Premier League record with 14 saves. Undoubtedly the top player in his position in the world right now.

Chris Smalling — 4/10

A real mess for long periods. As the anchor of the back three and an experienced leader of the team, he had to be the one to step up and sort out the chaos and he did the exact opposite, dropping deep, making mistakes and inviting pressure. Marcos Rojo — 4/10

All of the rust accumulated during his long-term knee injury came to a point. Everything was off from Rojo.

Victor Lindelöf — 6/10

Considering where he was a month or two ago, Lindelöf did decently in his assignment against Sánchez. Comfortably the best of the United back three.

Nemanja Matic — 6/10

Some crucial last-ditch blocks and tackles from Matic, who was playing through the pain barrier.

Paul Pogba — 7/10

A moment of absolute madness saw him get sent off and ruin what had been a great performance breaking from deep. It was a rare midfield display that was hugely influential despite his team not having much of the ball.

Jesse Lingard — 8/10

Two goals that encapsulated everything that Mourinho loves about Lingard: A great work rate, intelligent movement and the poise to finish the play off. Superb performance from an increasingly important player.

Ashley Young — 6/10

A mature showing from Young, who has become a vital leader on the pitch for his side.

Antonio Valencia — 6/10

Did terrifically on the opening goal but has some uncharacteristically poor touches and decisions.

Anthony Martial — 6/10

Showed an under-rated aspect of his game in his hold-up play and and ability to link with the other forward players but didn’t carry as much of a threat as he should have, given the amount of real estate available for him to run into.

Romelu Lukaku — 7/10

He might not have scored but you can understand why he continues to draw praise from his manager. Worked incredibly hard and troubled the Arsenal defence with his strength and intelligent understanding of space.

Substitutes:

Ander Herrera — 5/10

Lacking confidence and looking a little lost on the pitch, as he has all season.

Matteo Darmian — Not rated

Marcus Rashford — Not rated