Manchester United put a smile back on Jose Mourinho’s face as fine goals from Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard sealed a 2-0 win over Everton.
Martial started in the absence of the injured Romelu Lukaku and the United forward broke the deadlock in the 57th minute at Goodison Park.
Paul Pogba teed up Martial on the edge of the area and he stroked a sublime finish into the top corner for his ninth goal of the season.
Having struggled towards the end of 2017, United were more commanding in their first match of the new year and Lingard wrapped up the points with a superb solo strike in the 81st minute.
Here, we focus on Martial’s performance.
BASIC STATS
Minutes – 77
Goals – 1
Assists – 0
Shots – 2 (1)
Dribbles – 0
Passes – 26
Key passes – 2
Pass Accuracy – 80.8%
Touches – 44
EFFECTIVENESS
The striker capped off a mixed performance with an outstanding second half goal.
He looked off colour in the first half, failing to hold the ball up and instead trying to do it all himself rather than take the simple option of passing to a teammate.
Although he has the physicality to take on a strong centre back, the Frenchman is not a striker, and needs to be played on the left with Marcus Rashford up top in the absence of Romelu Lukaku.
With seven goals and three assists in 11 Premier League games this term, the elusive Martial warrants a place in Jose Mourinho’s starting team but needs to be employed in a left wing role.
KEY MOMENTS
29th min: Some loose defending from the hosts allowed space to open up down the left, and Martial collected possession and flashed the ball across the face of the goal, but Jordan Pickford reacted quickest to palm away.
55th min: A beauty of a goal. Paul Pogba raced down the left, drew in a defender and played the ball across to Martial on the edge of the box. The Frenchman took one touch and curled a sumptuous effort into the top corner.
65th min: He came bounding down the left, cut in and tries to find Pogba at the far post, but the skipper is inches from getting his head to it.
OUR VERDICT
He didn’t receive great service in the first half but showed signs of his class after netting a goal midway through the second period.
He played too deep and held the ball for too long – something the 22-year-old can’t afford to do against bigger opposition.
Overall, good signs from the Frenchman but he really needs to step up over the coming weeks to prove his worth to Mourinho – who doesn’t seem to like to play him regularly in his starting XI.
7/10