It was a frustrating evening for Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag with his Red Devils putting in a relatively impressive performance but not being able to take advantage in a 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace.
Manchester United had to settle for a single point after being unable to convert their chances against Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace side.
There were positives to take from this evening’s action but Ten Hag will be frustrated with the result.
Manchester United are set to face FC Twente midweek in their opening Europa League fixture on Wednesday night, before facing Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford in the Premier League next weekend.
Manchester United player ratings vs Crystal Palace
Andre Onana – 8 – Relatively safe on the ball and made an impressive double safe to keep a clean sheet for the Red Devils.
Noussair Mazraoui – 7- Relatively solid defensively and was able to be creative on the ball.
Matthijs de Ligt – 7- Looked solid at the back and was a threat on set pieces.
Lisandro Martinez – 6- looked relatively solid but made a silly tackle that could have led to a red card if he made contact with the opponent.
Diogo Dalot – 7- Very good in link-up play and overlapping to contribute to the team’s creativity.
Christian Eriksen – 7 – Impressive on the ball and linked up with Amad Diallo and Joshua Zirkzee well.
Kobbie Mainno – 7 – Played well in the centre and was impressive in tight spaces.
Bruno Fernandes – 7- Unlucky not to get on the scoresheet, lost possession easily on a couple of occasions.
Amad Diallo – 7- Impressive with link-up play and being a threat on the right wing.
Joshua Zirkzee – 7- Impressive on the ball, but could have more of a threat in the Palace box.
Alejandro Garnacho – 7 – Was a constant threat running at the Palace defence, unlucky to not get on the scoresheet.
Subs:
Marcus Rashford -6- Tried to be a threat in the second half but wasn’t able to create enough.
Rasmus Hojlund – 6- Struggled to get into the game as he regained match fitness.
Manuel Ugarte – 6 – Comfortable on the ball and disrupted Palace attacks.
The passing out from the back was terrible, not slow but at a standstill. Martinez never once sent an early ball to the winger whether Garnacho or Rashford. Dalot was equally poor, receiving the ball he time and again played it straight back to his centre backs instead of giving it to the forwards.
Orders from the boss? Don’t lose the ball at all costs? Looked like that was the general idea: a kind of slow motion version of City’s keep ball boredom.
There were a few moments of slick passing once the ball finally found its way forward, only for Bruno to lazily give it away, players stumbling over the ball, or fluffing shots.
However, you can see the side is progressing and getting stronger. Give them time and who knows?