Manchester United 1-1 Southampton: Player ratings & man of the match as Red Devils drop points again

It was a familiar story for Manchester United on Saturday, as once again they dropped points from a winning position, in the 1-1 draw with Southampton.

A good early start to the game was reflected by Jadon Sancho opening the scoring on 21 minutes when he tapped in at the back post after a United breakaway.

But that positive beginning didn’t last and the visitors ended the first half on top, something they continued into the second period.

It took just three minutes after the restart for Southampton to net, when Che Adams placed the ball past David De Gea.

It proved to be the final goal of the game as the points were shared at Old Trafford.

Manchester United player ratings

David De Gea- 6

Pulled off good saves to deny Stuart Armstrong and Romian Perraud shots in the first half. He also kept out an Armando Broja strike after the break, and had a solid afternoon.

Diogo Dalot- 6

His long passes were a dangerous asset for the Red Devils in the opening period and but his threat waned during the game. The full-back had a shot saved by Fraser Forster inside the box on 61 minutes, but his crossing was poor again.

Raphael Varane- 6

Dealt well with the physical battle offered from Adams and Broja, and was good in possession. However, he was beaten by the Chelsea loanee in the first half and could have done better for the Southampton goal.

Harry Maguire- 5

The United captain looked solid in the first half but had three moments to forget after the break when he was twice beaten by Broja, either side of Kyle Walker-Peters skipping past the former Leicester City man. Maguire did come close to scoring with two separate second-half efforts, both of which were saved by Forster.

Luke Shaw- 5

Looked much better going forward than defensively and he played Adams onside for his second-half equaliser. Shaw impressively blocked James Ward-Prowse’s early shot, which led to a United counter.

Scott McTominay- 5 (of 75)

Not at his best for United and McTominay struggled with the movement from the Southampton midfield. He was booked in the first half and, following a few fouls after the break, was replaced late on by Ralf Rangnick.

Bruno Fernandes- 6

The No.18 enjoyed a good first half but failed to have the same influence after half-time. Fernandes did lead the press for most of the afternoon and worked back tirelessly during the game. It was also the midfielder’s pass to Marcus Rashford which set up Sancho’s goal.

Paul Pogba- 7

Another good display from the midfielder, who produced an impressive range of passing with both feet. Pogba contributed to most of the hosts’ best moves and won several fouls with dummies and feints. However, he failed to deliver a game-changing moment.

Marcus Rashford- 5 (off 82)

The out-of-form attacker set up Sancho for his opener, but it was a rare moment of quality from Rashford. The England international took too long in possession, wasted a few shooting opportunities and overran the ball several times. He also was booked for a poor tackle on Romain Perraud.

Cristiano Ronaldo- 5

Returned to the team in place of Edinson Cavani and wasn’t particularly impressive up front. He missed an early chance after failing to put enough power on the shot and allowing Perraud to get back in and clear the ball. Ronaldo also saw an effort saved on 61 minutes and had a goal ruled out 10 minutes later for offside.

Jadon Sancho- 8

Another impressive display from the 21-year-old, who set up Ronaldo for the an early chance that was cleared off the line. The winger then put United ahead after 21 minutes with a simple finish at the back post. Sancho caused Southampton repeated issues down their right flank with his dribbling, while he also linked well his attacking team-mates. He just beat Walker-Peters and Broja to our man of the match award.

Anthony Elanga- 6 (on 75)

Didn’t have a huge amount of time to contribute to attacks, and his cameo was largely uneventful.

Jesse Lingard (on 82)

Southampton player ratings

Forster 7; Walker-Peters 8, Bednarek 6 (Stephens 46; 7), Salisu 7, Perraud 6; Romeu 7 (Diallo 90+4), Ward-Prowse 6, S. Armstrong 7; Elyounoussi 5 (Livramento 71; 6), Broja 8, Adams 7.