Jesse Lingard now a Jose Mourinho player and Luke Shaw pushing hard as Manchester United beat with Derby
United's late show sees them into the fourth round
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester United will be in the draw for the fourth round of the FA Cup next week, after Jesse Lingard scored yet another top-class strike and Romelu Lukaku added a second to send the team second place in the Premier League through at the expense of the team second place in the Championship.
Here are five things we learned from the draw at Old Trafford...
Romero gets a chance – but doesn’t really…
The Independent reported this week that Sergio Romero, who is probably the best No 2 goalkeeper in the Premier League, was eyeing a January move away from the club given the lack of playing time he has received in a World Cup year. He is Argentina’s first-choice stopper, after all, and has never put a foot wrong for United.
So Jose Mourinho gives him a start in place of the world-class David De Gea against Derby. First-team football? Yes. But an opportunity to show what he can do? Not really. Short of a decent reaction save to flick a header over the bar, Championship sides will rarely give goalkeepers a chance to shine. Keeping two top goalkeepers happy is never easy, as Mourinho may find out this month.
Rashford central striker
Cast your minds back to February 2015, and an injury to Anthony Martial gave Marcus Rashford his first Manchester United start. Four goals in two games and Old Trafford had a new hero. He was playing as a fearless centre forward and terrorising defenders who weren’t used to his direct running.
Since then, that pace and direct running has seen him pushed out wide, away from his favoured position, and based on tonight’s performance where he was central, you can see why. He hit the post from a close-range header before nodding a second straight at Scott Carson. He is missing that killer instinct which is perhaps as a result of fatigue, which Mourinho alluded to last month. Either way, he only lasted 45 minutes in that position before being jettisoned back to the wing.
Lindelof finally settling
Maybe odd to pick out Victor Lindelof for his performance against Derby County, given that he did nothing notable in the entire 90 minutes. But that’s exactly what he’s needed, an uneventful game – and he’s had a few of them now, much to his and his manager’s relief.
Lindelof started his United career watching from the stands after failing to impress and when he did get on the pitch, he couldn’t keep his position, or his footing. However, after injuries have put him back in the starting XI, he is finally starting to settle. The more error-free games, the more confidence will come his way.
Shaw trying for new contract
Since Luke Shaw joined Manchester United from Southampton in 2014, both Mourinho and his predecessor have tried a number of options in an attempt not to play him. Daley Blind, Marcos Rojo, Matteo Darmian, Ashley Young and – the only actual left-back selected – Cameron Borthwick-Jackson, have all filled the void but none have managed to hold down the spot.
Young has been the best of the lot but even he, at 32 years old, has a shelf life. So where does that leave Shaw? Fighting for a new contract, that’s where. Over the festive season, as a result of Young’s ban, Shaw has been very impressive, but it’s been against weaker opposition and you get the impression Mourinho still doesn’t trust him. Watch this space…
Lingard now a Mourinho player
All of Mourinho’s favoured attackers have the same attributes. They’re all quick, they’re all hard working and they’re all good in front of goal. Just ask Willian, Mesut Ozil (at Real Madrid) and Samuel Eto’o to name but a few. Jesse Lingard had the first two nailed down long before the Portuguese arrived at Old Trafford but in the recent two months he has added the third attribute.
Now with eight goals in his last 10 games, he is the unlikely first-choice No 10 at the moment, or even the hard-working right winger to act as the foil to either Martial or Rashford on the other side. He is a ball of energy who refuses to give defenders a chance to breathe on the ball and that is exactly what Mourinho wants from his strikers. He topped off his performance with yet another top drawer goal.
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