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Player Ratings: Everton 2-2 Manchester United
Manchester United were denied back-to-back victories on Sunday afternoon after a late goal in stoppage time from Ainsley Maitland-Niles levelled the scoring for Everton to make it 2-2 at the Hill Dickinson Stadium.
Michael Carrick started the game with an unchanged 11 from the previous weekend's match, where they beat Ipswich Town comfortably.
This time round, United controlled much of the first half, yet they were struggling to carve out any real opportunities. The one big chance of the half fell to Bruno Fernandes, who did excellently well to connect to a ball on the volley, yet he ended up hitting the bar.
United came out for the second half flying, and they immediately took the lead. Kobbie Mainoo found Bryan Mbeumo, who weaved past a couple of Everton defenders, before cutting inside and tucking the ball into the bottom corner.
Carrick's side looked to defend their lead, but Everton kept pushing, and they eventually equalised thanks to Tyrique George, who smashed a strike past Senne Lammens from the near post. United went ahead again just moments later, when Luke Shaw's cross found Benjamin Sesko, who headed it into the back of the net.
However, just as United looked set to come away with three points, Maitland-Niles hit a powerful strike from outside of the box to make it 2-2 in the sixth minute of stoppage time.
Here is how the United team fared in a frustrating afternoon:
Senne Lammens 5
Not his best performance in a United shirt. Showed some hints of hesitation and was beaten at the near post by George for the equaliser. While it was a powerful strike, he probably should have done better. He could not do much about the stoppage time goal.
Diogo Dalot 5
Got off to a shaky start with him finding it difficult to handle Everton's forwards down his side. Looked much more solid throughout portions of the game, but also gave the ball cheaply on multiple occasions.
Harry Maguire 6
Got a nasty blow to the face seconds into the match, and he also should have done better when marking Thierno Barry. However, he looked relatively solid throughout the rest of the game, and dealt with the pressure well.
Lisandro Martinez 5
Great on the ball yet again, but he also should have done better for the first equaliser, failing to deal with the ball that eventually made its way to George. United do play much better in possession with him in the team.
Luke Shaw 7
A relatively good performance from the left-back, who was under pressure throughout large parts of the game. He made a brilliant block at the back, and was very solid defensively for large portions of the game, apart from George's goal, where he should have been tighter to his man. Going forward, he was actually effective and linked up very well with Marcus Rashford. Provided a brilliant cross for the Sesko goal.
Kobbie Mainoo 8
Manchester United's best player. He was solid throughout the whole time he was on the pitch, winning many of his duels and looking adventurous with his passing, always looking to make things happen. He controlled the play for United and was excellent at carving out space for his teammates. A definite starter for the games to come.
Youri Tielemans 7
Continues to improve under Carrick and helped to control the play alongside Mainoo. Tried to keep things simple and linked play effectively in the middle of the park. He did tire as the match wore on, with United being more exposed in the middle.
Bryan Mbeumo 7
A match of moments for Mbeumo. While he was careless at times in the first half, he did manage to light the game up with a moment of sheer brilliance early in the second half, beating plenty of Everton defenders before slotting it past Jordan Pickford.
Bruno Fernandes 6
Not the most effective of matches from the United captain. Hit the woodwork in the first half with an excellent volley, an found some space in midfield at times. However, he did not get into the game enough, and was rather unlucky not to win more fouls after getting kicked on multiple occasions. Seemed frustrated throughout the final few minutes.
Marcus Rashford 8
After Mainoo, Rashford was United's best player. Continued to show why he is a genuine threat down the left, tormenting Everton's defence time and time again. Looked really effective when combining with Shaw, and also showed his confidence on the ball by trying to beat his man. Another positive outing.
Matheus Cunha 6
He was presented with a golden opportunity to put United ahead in the first half after Rashford did brilliantly to find him. Cunha was marked very well by the Everton defenders throughout the game, but he still found pockets of space in between the defence and midfield, and he is growing in confidence.
Substitutes
Patrick Dorgu 5
Did not offer much down the left, and he is struggling for form early in the season.
Benjamin Sesko 7
He found it difficult to get in the game at first, but then he popped up with an excellent header to score, and while he thought he had won the game, it did not prove to be the case.
Leny Yoro 5
A late substitute and probably should have done better at times.
Andrey Santos 6
Brought on late for Mainoo, and looked composed.
Noussair Mazraoui 6
A very late sub, and made the clearance that eventually led to Maitland-Niles' goal.
Head Coach - Michael Carrick 6
Decided to stick to the same starting line-up as the previous week, and it did not seem like a bad decision in the first hour or so. United looked like the better side up until they scored, with Carrick's team then dropping off and allowing Everton too much of the ball. United continue to struggle defensively and Carrick will need to sort out weaknesses at the back fast, especially with the Manchester Derby coming up next week. A frustrating ending to a relatively ok performance from United.
