In a game of two halves, Manchester United beat Real Madrid 2-1 on penalties after drawing 1-1 in normal time.
The first half was a thrilling contest as both sides played some vibrant stuff in attack and Jesse Lingard scored a glorious goal. After all the subs, and given the extreme heat, the second half was a much more disjointed affair although Madrid did equalise from the penalty spot. United won the resultant shootout after a hilarious shoot-out in which 7 of the 10 takers failed to score. But what did we learn?
1. Andreas Pereira is here to stay
United had a lot of players out on loan last season and Andreas Pereira was literally the only one who did well. And this was despite playing for La Liga no-hopers Granada. The youngster even announced that he had no intention of going back out on loan this season: his intention was to make it at United. And he went about that in superb fashion against Real Madrid.
Playing on the right of a midfield trio Pereira perhaps lacked the magic he could have shown had he been on the left and able to open his body up, he showed an incredible confidence in his skill; rarely giving the ball away despite Madrid pressure. He was always available for a pass, always willing to keep things moving. Traits José Mourinho values heavily, and doing what Mourinho likes is the passport to joy. There can be no doubt that Andreas Pereira is here to stay.
2. Luka Modric suits the no. 10
Finally Luka Modric took the no. 10 shirt at Real Madrid. The world’s finest central midfielder wearing the world’s finest shirt number. Modric looked great in his new shirt, floating around the pitch with the kind of effortless genius that his coach Zinedine Zidane would have been proud of.
As always, nearly every good bit of play Madrid performed flowed through the Croatian. Even though Los Blancos lacked the decisive final touch in attack to turn that quality into goals for the 45 minutes he was on the pitch, Modric dominated midfield and created Madrid’s best chance when he rinsed Fellaini and flashed a cross along the United six yard line.
3. Timothy Fosu-Immensah
There are some players who are just oh so very “Mourinho” – you know the type even if it’s hard to fully define it. Physical players, but with a great technique. They can overpower opponents, even outrun them, but they also have an incredible ability to time their interventions and interceptions. They also have to be fond of, or at least capable of, incredible violence should the need arise.
Timothy Fosu-Mensah is the most “Mourinho” player in the Manchester United squad. If he were 25 he’d be the first name on the team-sheet. But he’s a teenager, so he barely plays. But he got a chance at right-back against Real Madrid and absolutely nailed his audition in the first-half. He was composed, positionally aware and always technically on-point and decisive in the tackle.
Faced up against Gareth Bale and Karim Benzema, Fosu-Mensah held his own. Madrid found him impassable and there was one moment where Bale had a five yard head-start on him and the youngster sprinted flat-out to overtake him and win the ball back. Gareth Bale. Timothy Fosu-Mensah is not messing around and, if given more chances, will surely take the Premier League by storm.
4. Lethal left-backs
This summer Real Madrid spent €24m to sign Theo Hernández from city rivals Atlético Madrid. This seemed an odd purchase given how important Marcelo is to Los Blancos’ style of play, but today we got a glimpse of why there may be method in Madrid’s madness.
In the first half, Marcelo was magnificent. A hurricane of creativity, dribbling and chance creation. The move where he scorpion-flicked the ball away from Marouane Fellaini whilst defending a back-post cross, heading the loose ball then sprinting away from the giant Belgian, was glorious.
In the second half, Theo was more quiet but ended up having an even more decisive impact that Marcelo and showing just why Madrid spent that money. In a largely pedestrian half, Theo pushed the tempo and it was his lung-busting surge that drew a foul from Victor Lindelof and won Madrid the penalty they equalised from. Los Blancos now have the best left-back duo in the world and will be able to rotate to their hearts content without really losing too much attacking thrust.
5. Martial is class
Oh, what a gift Anthony Martial is. Perpetually underappreciated by José Mourinho because he’s not some chest-beating macho headcase, he nevertheless was one of United’s most productive players last season and here, in United’s first big game of this campaign, he stole the show.
Sure sure, he defended diligently. He tracked back and protected his full-back well. And he attacked with efficiency too nothing too showy. Well, except 45 minutes into the match. With half-time approaching he picked the ball up on the left touchline.
Martial sidled towards the by-line, squaring Dani Carvajal up. He darted towards him then cut back to Lucas Vázquez before whipping the ball forward and leaving Vázquez waving his foot at thin air. Meanwhile Carvajal’s head was spinning around like a paranoid cyclist and Martial drew him in before switching feet at the last second and popping forward, evading the desperate lunge of Luka Modric. And just as the massive Raphael Varane was closing to block him, Martial calmly slotted the ball between his legs to the unmarked Jesse Lingard who promptly poked the ball home.
It was a miraculous goal. A gorgeous thing that proved just how good Martial can be and why the notion of replacing him with a 28 year-old journeyman like Perisic is preposterous and, frankly, offensive. This kid is a genius, José. Alright he blazed over in the shootout, but so what, it’s just a friendly. Stop being weird and play him every week!
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