You must hand it to United; they can disappoint in every imaginable way. Carrick has come under pressure after some shocking performances this season (failing to see off ten-men City and ten-men Spurs spring to mind). You also had that defensive disasterclass against Brighton in the Carabao Cup.
Last night they manned up, taking the game to Atleti in the cauldron-like atmosphere of the Riyadh Air Metropolitano. Yet they still managed to lose the game 2-0. On top of that, Lisandro Martinez went full Roy Keane in the post-match press conference, calling out the top brass by saying this isn’t a Champions League quality squad. Wow! In any event, here are my ratings for Carrick’s valiant United side.
GK: Senne Lemmens- 6/10
Lemmens looked much more composed with the ball at his feet last night. Showed strong hands on a few occasions, getting down well to deny Grimaldo before the ball unfortunately ricocheted to Lookman for an easy tap-in.
RB: Diego Dalot- 4/10
Another game, another unconvincing Dalot performance. To be fair, the Portuguese fullback put in real shift last night, overlapping continuously to try assist Fernandes down that right-hand side. But he neglected his defensive duties on a few occasions, exposed by Baena for Barrios’ opener. Dalot just can’t detect imminent danger.
CB: Lenny Yoro- 7/10
I’m really starting to like the look of Frenchman Lenny Yoro. Yes, he perhaps could have done better on Atleti’s absurdly early opener. But he looked regal from that point on, slotting back into the central defensive role after playing at right-back against Spurs. Read the play well and stepped up well to advance the ball. His red card was an absolute joke and simply would never have happened in the Premier League.
CB: Lisandro Martinez- 7/10
I think that Martinez and Yoro dealt well with Julian Alvarez’s threat. Even when down to ten men, Martinez looked relatively comfortable dealing Atleti. His performance will obviously be forgotten in the wake of his pointed comments towards the United hierarchy. Some fans will say that United didn’t really need any more drama. I think the vast majority appreciate his honest appraisal of the situation.
LB: Ayden Heaven- 6/10
All things considered, Heaven can be quite pleased with his outing at the Metropolitano. He looked like he could be on a hiding to nothing after coming in to replace the injured Luke Shaw (what a shocker). Seriously, United’s dereliction of duty in that left-back position needs to be studied. But Heaven did just fine (though he was probably a bit lucky to get away with some timid defending in Atleti’s disallowed 2nd).
CM: Carlos Baleba- 7/10
Sure, the midfield colossus was guilty of getting sucked into contact on a few occasions (his overeagerness was instrumental in Atletico’s opener). But he was the one United player who Simeone would have enjoyed watching last night. The Cameroonian looked up for the fight, throwing himself into tackles to earn the grudging respect of everyone at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano.
CM: Andrey Santos- 5/10
Andrey Santos still looks a bit lost to me. He started the game horrendously, giving the ball away multiple times during a shocking first half-hour. He got a bit tidier on the ball as the game progressed but was still largely anonymous. I don’t see him picking up many starts when Mainoo is fit.
AM: Youri Tielemans- 6/10
Tielemans had a bit of a rollercoaster last night. Looked a bit slow on the press in the early stages and occasionally disappeared when things got physical. But he did pick up some dangerous pockets of space in that 10 role, creating gilt-edged chances for Mbeumo and Fernandes with some terrific passing.
LW: Marcus Rashford- 4/10
Marcus Rashford never enjoyed the greatest of returns to Spain, struggling to beat his man in a lacklustre showing that will be manna from heaven for his haters (of which there are more than a few). He plays with the brooding self-seriousness of someone in a hostage situation. The inability to move him on in the summer is turning into a cancer at the club.
RW: Bruno Fernandes- 4/10
Does Bruno have a contractual obligation to play no matter what? Carrick was brought in to freshen things up post-Amorim- why go back to playing Bruno on the right? It just doesn’t work. Fernandes couldn’t get past a defender last night and his passing was poor. He also missed a decent chance to make it 1-1 just after the break.
STR: Bryan Mbeumo- 6/10
Five minutes into the match, I thought he may as well come and sit next to me on the couch. Atleti scored that freakishly early opener and looked set to dominate possession. But Mbeumo tried manfully all night and should have pulled United level with one of two excellent first-half opportunities. He did well to manipulate the space for those chances, connecting instinctually with Tielemans in the buildup play.
Subs
Mason Mount on in 66th minute for Carlos Baleba- 5/10
All the members of United’s 66th minute triple substitution were rendered somewhat obsolete by Lenny Yoro’s ridiculous red. Mount looked lightweight after replacing human wrecking ball Baleba.
Joshua Zirkzee on in 66th minute for Marcus Rashford- 6/10
Welcome to the quagmire that is Joshua Zirkzee. As I noted earlier, his impact on the game was nullified by the red card. But he showed some encouraging little moments, cleverly jinking into space before setting up Cunha in stoppage time. How much more patience do United fans have?
Amad Diallo on in 66th minute for Youri Tielemans- 5/10
Diallo was once again anonymous. I personally think he still doesn’t feel a 100% fit. Much like the match against Spurs, Diallo didn’t really take on the fullbacks when in 1v1 scenarios. Worked hard but the game was essentially gone after the red.
Matheus Cunha on in 80th minute for Bruno Fernandes- n/a
Probably should have scored in stoppage time but not enough to go on overall.
Harry Maguire on in 80th minute for Ayden Heaven- n.a
Slotted in fine but nothing to really judge him on.
