Manchester United succumbed to a shock defeat away at Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon.
The Red Devils travelled to St James’ Park knowing that only a win would do as they aimed to maintain their unlikely pursuit of catching up with Manchester City at the top of the table.
However, in what was a massively uninspiring display, Jose Mourinho’s men could not find their way past a resilient Newcastle side.
Matt Ritchie’s first-time strike in the second-half was enough to separate the sides in what was a hugely intense affair throughout, with both sides having their share of chances.
Alexis Sanchez and Anthony Martial both spurned golden opportunities for United in the second-half and moments of careless defending saw Mourinho’s side come away from Newcastle with nothing to show for their efforts.
It was a wholly disappointing afternoon for the Red Devils. Here are our Manchester United player ratings following the defeat.
David de Gea - 7
Helpless to prevent the goal and was rarely tested aside from Jonjo Shelvey’s early strike, which he dealt with well.
Antonio Valencia - 6
Coped with Kenedy reasonably well but had little effect on the match.
Chris Smalling - 3
His dive summed up his performance. Pathetic and bemusing. He was a clear weak link at the back for United.
Phil Jones - 6
Made an important block and looked more comfortable than he did against Spurs.
Ashley Young - 6
Didn’t do a great deal right or wrong and was fairly steady.
Paul Pogba - 5
Was off the pace and looked clearly uncomfortable following his knock.
Nemanja Matic - 6
Had a wobbly start to the game but gradually got to grips with the tempo.
Anthony Martial - 7
Was energetic and looked to be United’s greatest attacking threat. Should have netted his one-on-one in the first-half, though.
Jesse Lingard - 5
Was relatively anonymous throughout and struggled to stamp his mark on the game.
Alexis Sanchez - 6
Always looked to create in the final third and his technical ability was there for all to see. He missed an absolute sitter, though, failing to notch after rounding Martin Dúbravka.
Romelu Lukaku - 6
Battled and battled but his efforts proved to be of no avail.
Substitutes
Michael Carrick – 5: Came on and kept things ticking over, but added little to the match.
Juan Mata – 6: Drifted from left to right and tried to create.
Scott McTominay – 5: Couldn’t quite make an impact despite his endeavour.