Manchester United 1 -1 Stoke City, player ratings

In a match they dominated from the first whistle, Man Utd will only have themselves to blame for not taking all three points.  In the first half,  Stoke simply could not handle the movement and precise passing by United, in what was arguably their best attacking display of the season, their finishing however, left a lot to be desired.  The game should have been seen out long before the half time whistle, with clear chances falling to Ibrahimovic, Pogba and Lingard.

When martial finally opened the deadlock with just over 20 minutes remaining, it looked likely that the floodgates would open, but it was Stoke who scored next.  Joe Allen managed to capitalise on a mistake made by De Gea to secure an unlikely point for Stoke.

Player Ratings are below:

Man United vs Stoke – Player Ratings  

Man Utd

De Gea – 4 – A rare calamity from the world class goalkeeper that ultimately cost his team all 3 points.

Valencia – 6 – Continues to look at home at full back,  marauded forward whenever the opportunity presented itself but was occasionally rash in a challenge.

Bailly –  7 – Relished the physical confrontation with his fellow countrymen Bony, his distribution was good and provided his team with much needed energy in the latter stages of the game.

Smalling – 6 – Was humiliated by a Shaqiri nutmeg and looked nervous at times, not quite performing to the standards he set last season.

Blind – 6 –  Got forward well however his crosses weren’t to his usual high standards.

Herrera – 8 – Was dynamic in middle of the park and was good in both attack and defence, further staking his claim as first choice in the middle alongside Pogba.

Pogba – 6 – Glimpses of class from the Frenchmen, his through ball to Ibrahimovic oozed quality, however he lost the ball far too frequently.

Rashford – 6 – The wonderkid was enthusiastic and his pace caused the Stoke defence problems. His cross for Pogba’s chance right at the end should have ended in a goal.

Lingard – 7 – Justified Jose’s decision to start him and impressed in the first half especially, his movement off the ball was intelligent and he used the ball creatively.

Mata – 8 – Very unlucky to be subbed off,  was United’s creator in chief  and his departure left a creative void. He has surely made the number 10 position his own.

Ibrahimovic – 7 – Missed a guilt edge opportunity at the start of the game. But linked up well with his teammates and was a constant danger.

Subs

Martial –  8 – Scored immediately after his introduction with a fine finish. A positive performance after a slow start to the campaign.

Rooney – 5 – Got a false assist after his miscontrol of the ball. He looked off the pace again.

Depay – 5 – Came on after Stoke equaliser, was bright but lacked end product.

Stoke

Camp – 9 – The veteran goalkeeper made a number of exceptional saves that kept his team in the match. He came to his sides' rescue time and time again.

Johnson – 6 – Struggled with Rashford’s pace at times and wasn’t given opportunity to go forward as much as he usually does.  However his experience shone through in the end.

Shawcross – 6 – Up against the man that effectively ended his England career, Ibrahimovic. He was a strong aerial presence making crucial headed clearances and made a number of  key interventions.

Martin Indi – 6 – Made a number of key interventions for his side but was rash in some of his decision making.

Pieters – 5 – His distribution was far from fancy and opted to lash the ball clear whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Cameron – 6 – Wasted Stoke’s best chance of the first half hitting the ball straight at De Gea.  His distribution was poor going forward but was strong in a tackle.

Whelan – 4 – The game seemed to bypass Whelan, was outclassed by Herrera in midfield and made little impact on proceedings.

Allen – 8-  Scored the all important equaliser, the Welshman was full of running and provided the link from defence to attack for the visiting side.  Was by far the best outfield player for Stoke.

Shaqiri – 6 – Skinned Smalling by the corner flag with an audacious piece of trickery,  his pace helped his team on the counterattack but did not get the better of Blind on the flank.

Arnautovic – 5-  Relatively quite going forward for Stoke but worked hard tracking back.

Bony – 3 – Just not at the races . Looked laboured on the ball and did not link up well with his teammates.

Subs

Bardsley –  N/A – Came on in the last few minutes to help his team defend the point.

Walters – 5 – He was industrious on his arrival and played a key role in the equaliser.

Crouch – 5- Came on for Bony, didn’t get the service he required but his presence helped cause a panic for the goal.