Manchester United 1-0 Everton: 5 talking points
Manchester United regained the sanctuary of fifth spot from West Ham United, as Anthony Martial’s 54th-minute strike gave them a 1-0 victory in a low-key game over Everton. The result keeps United one point short of rivals Manchester City in fourth, with United having seven league games left in the season.
The encounter will be remembered more for the pre-match ceremony, which saw the South Stand at Old Trafford renamed as the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand after Sir Bobby Charlton who represented the club from 1955 to 1973. He was a survivor of the 1958 Munich air disaster and was part of the side which won their first European Cup in 1968.
We look at the five talking points that shaped up a game which won’t last long in the memory :
Everton’s defence is worrying
Everton have been a side full of goals, but there’s a reason they still languish in mid-table – their appalling defence. The concession of the goal was an example of the same – as Seamus Coleman failed to deal with a Timothy Fosu-Mensah cross that didn’t really fizz across the penalty area.
His mistake was well pounced upon by Anthony Martial, who promptly slotted the ball off goalkeeper Joel Robles’ feet and into the back of the net. They were also being stretched by Matteo Darmian and Timothy Fosu-Mensah on the wings.
Manager Roberto Martinez will have to do some serious work regarding their back-four if they have to challenge for the European places next season.