Southampton 2-3 Manchester United
Southampton 2-3 Manchester United
By the end, even the Southampton supporters were applauding Anthony Martial. Not for the goals which dragged Manchester United back into this game, but for having the decency to stop and help Virgil van Dijk treat his cramp.
If
anyone had been responsible for the state of Van Dijk's leg muscles, it
was Martial, who twisted the Dutch central defender inside out before
coolly converting his first goal at St Mary's.
He
never looked like missing the chance. The finish was clinical, as was
his second. It came gifted by Maya Yoshida, but was despatched
nevertheless with the clear-minded confidence of a young man unperturbed
by the expectations.
Anthony Martial (centre) netted his second goal in as many Premier League games for Manchester United to level the scores at 1-1
Martial (right), Manchester United's
new £58million man, wheels away in celebration alongside team-mate and
fellow goalscorer Juan Mata
Morgan Schneiderlin (left) joins the
celebrations after Martial (right) cancelled out Graziano Pelle's
opening goal at St Mary's on Sunday
Mata appeared to be offside in the build-up to Manchester United's first goal when a replay was shown on Sky Sports
MATCH FACTS, PLAYER RATINGS, PREMIER LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE FROM ST MARY'S
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Stekelenburg
6; Yoshida 4.5, Fonte 5.5, van Dijk 5.5, Targett 6 (Martina 46 6);
Romeu 6 (S Davis 56 6), Wanyama 6; Ward-Prowse 6 (Long 76 6), Tadić 6,
Mané 6; Pellè 7.5
Subs not used: Davis (GK), Soares, Rodriguez, Juanmi
Goals: Pelle 13, 86
Booked: Fonte, Van Dijk
Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De
Gea 8; Darmian 5.5 (Valencia 46 6), Smalling 6.5, Blind 5, Rojo 6
(McNair 69 6); Carrick 6 (Schweinsteiger 60 6), Schneiderlin 6; Mata
7.5, Rooney 6, Depay 7.5; Martial 8.5
Subs not used: Romero (GK), Young, Herrera, Fellaini
Goals: Martial 34, 50, Mata 68
Referee: Mark Clattenburg 7
Attendance: 31,588
Man of the Match: Anthony Martial
Anthony Martial's heat map from St Mary's. CLICK HERE to see more from Match Zone
As
he nestled the ball into the bottom corner, the £58million transfer fee
no longer seemed like such an outrageous sum of money – at least not in
football's over-inflated terms.
'What a waste of money,' sang United fans, enjoying the irony, once he had made it 2-1, five minutes into the second half.
Martial
scored three in his first 75 minutes of Barclays Premier League
football. Wayne Rooney has taken seven months to score the same number.
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