Burnley 1-1 Manchester United: Player ratings and man of the match as Pogba & Sancho impress

Manchester United dropped points on their top-four rivals on Tuesday when they drew 1-1 with Burnley at Turf Moor.

The Red Devils opened the scoring on 18 minutes when Paul Pogba placed the ball past Nick Pope, after Luke Shaw picked out the Frenchman in the box with an excellent cross.

The visitors did have the ball in the back of the Burnley net two more times in the opening 45 minutes, but Raphael Varane’s header was harshly ruled out for a Harry Maguire foul in an offside position during the build-up, while Josh Brownhill’s own-goal was correctly chalked off for Pogba’s foul on Erik Pieters.

United had 12 first-half shots to Burnley’s zero, but within three minutes of the interval it was 1-1 after Jay Rodriguez broke into box and fired past David De Gea.

It proved to be the final goal of the game and although United pushed late on to find a winner, they couldn’t manage to grab a second goal.

Manchester United player ratings

David De Gea- 6

Produced a brilliant save to deny Wout Weghorst’s shot and then Dwight McNeil’s effort on 63 minutes. But it was a relatively quiet night for the goalkeeper, who could do nothing about Rodriguez’s equaliser.

Diogo Dalot- 6

The young right-back wasn’t at his best at Turf Moor and his crossing was certainly off. Dalot did offer an out-ball down the right flank and contributed to attacks without being caught out defensively.

Raphael Varane- 7

Saw his early header ruled out for an odd offside decision against Maguire, and had a flicked effort kept out by Pope on 78 minutes. It was a solid yet unspectacular showing from Varane, and the Frenchman wasn’t put off by the physical battle with Weghorst.

Harry Maguire- 4

It was his foul that resulted in Varane’s goal being disallowed and he was at fault for Rodriguez’s equaliser after being turned too easily by Weghorst in the build-up. The defender also could have been sent off for a challenge on Rodriguez around the hour mark. The home fans certainly felt it should have been a red, but Mike Dean judged it to just be a booking. Overall, it was a disappointing night for the United captain.

Luke Shaw- 6

Looked much more like his old self in the first half and he linked well down the left wing. Shaw provided plenty of crosses into the box, including the assist for Pogba’s goal. However, like several United players, he couldn’t keep up that level after the break.

Scott McTominay- 6 (off 80)

Covered a lot of ground over the night and seemed to pick up a knock in the second half. It was a battle up against Burnley’s midfield, one McTominay never shied away from, but he didn’t have the same level of influence on proceedings as he did in the corresponding fixture in December.

Paul Pogba- 8

Pogba’s opener was his first league since January 2021 and he impressed again for the Red Devils. He looked very comfortable in the first half but didn’t have the same impact after the break, perhaps unsurprisingly given his long period on the sidelines. Despite that it was a good showing from United’s No.6.

Bruno Fernandes- 7

His sublime cross set up Varane for his disallowed goal and the No.18 demonstrated a good range of passing throughout the night. But Fernandes failed to pull the strings to same extent after the break, which contributed to United’s second-half slump.

Marcus Rashford- 6 (off 85)

The attacker had two first-half shots saved by Pope, while he played an important role in the build-up to Pogba’s opener. Rashford threatened with a few direct dribbles and crosses into the box but wasn’t at his very best.

Edinson Cavani- 5 (off 68)

It was a mixed night for the striker, who contributed to a more fluid United attack at times in opening 45. But he also didn’t see a much amount of the ball and had a header saved by Pope after 33 minutes which he may feel he could have done better with. Cavani was replaced in latter stages.

Jadon Sancho- 8

Our man of the match after a stellar display at Turf Moor. Sancho led United’s attacks with his creative and inventive dribbling, while his crosses were also dangerous. The winger contributed to the Red Devils’ build-up play and rarely misplaced a pass. An excellent display from the No.25, his best yet for the club.

Cristiano Ronaldo- 5 (on 68)

Didn’t have a huge amount of time to make an impact, but he did have three shots while on the pitch, two headers off target and a strike which was blocked by James Tarkowski.

Jesse Lingard (on 80), Athony Elanga (on 85)

Burnley player ratings

Pope 6; Roberts 6, Tarkowski 7, Mee 6, Pieters 7; McNeil 7, Westwood 6, Brownhill 6, Cornet 7 (Lennon 68;5); Rodriguez 7 (Barnes 88), Weghorst 7.