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Manchester United Under-21s suffered defeat at home to Chelsea as the visitors leapfrogged United to go top of the Premier League 2 table.
These are our player ratings for the match. You can read a detailed match report here.
(A score of six is around average.)
Ratings
Will Murdock – 6 – He was visibly disappointed in himself for not getting a stronger hand on Chelsea’s first goal, but commanded his area well when claiming crosses and made five saves.
Louis Jackson – 5.5 – He started out of position at right-back, where he was strong in the air to defend Chelsea’s cross-field switches, but struggled defending one v one against Jesse Derry. He moved into centre-back in the second half, where he looked more comfortable.
Sonny Aljofree – 5 – He failed to clear his lines on a couple of occasions and generally did not defend the box well.
Godwill Kukonki – 5.5 – He defended well when stepping out from the back but could have done better when defending the box, often letting his man slip away from him. In possession, he made a couple of good forward passes.
Diego Leon – 4 – It was a match to forget for Leon. He got forward early on but took a shot into row Z before having a cross go straight to the keeper. Defensively, Genesis Antwi ran him ragged, turning him for the first goal, and he lost Leo Cardoso in the box who went on to score the second.
Finley McAllister – 6 – He started the match well with a number of interceptions in midfield and made one defence-splitting pass that should have earned him an assist. He made a few strange decisions, such as conceding a corner under no pressure and lunging into a tackle to earn a yellow card when nowhere close to getting the ball.
Tyler Fletcher – 7.5 – The clear standout for United, he was strong defensively and in possession. He covered a lot of ground, sweeping up both left and right, and was key to United’s high press, which was very effective in the opening stages of the match. He fed the ball into the attacking line quickly and had some nice turns under pressure to open space in midfield that United failed to fully capitalise on.
Malachi Sharpe – 5 – He was involved early with a run down the right wing but faded soon after and rarely troubled Chelsea.
Jayce Fitzgerald – 5.5 – He combined with the midfield well to congest the central areas and force turnovers in the first 20 minutes, but lost his influence as time went on and did not do enough in the number 10 spot.
Jack Moorhouse – 5 – Back from his loan spell, he showed a glimpse of his dribbling ability but never really got going and was eventually forced off with an injury.
Chido Obi – N/A – He suffered a nasty blow to the side of the head from Max Merrick’s clearance and had to be substituted off just minutes into the match.
Substitutes
Victor Musa – 5.5 – He started brightly off the bench with a run in behind but could not find the finish. He had a couple more decent runs but was ineffective once he received the ball.
Yuel Helafu – 6 – It was a solid display; he dealt with Chelsea’s wingers better than Jackson and Leon and was comfortable in possession.
Jim Thwaites – 5.5 – He played a nice switch of play to Mantato late on but did not make much of an impact apart from that.
Bendito Mantato – 6 – He provided a rare spark in a dull second half with his pace down the right wing, but even those moments were fleeting.
Feature image Ben Roberts photo via Getty Images
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