Manchester United vs Barcelona – Player ratings for the high octane Europa League clash at the Camp Nou
Manchester United came out the stronger team in a 2-2 draw against Barcelona at the Camp Nou in their Europa League last 16 qualifying first leg
The game was played at astonishing pace and both teams tried to cancel each other out, trying to win each individual and tactical battle on the pitch.
Here’s our opinion of both teams’ player ratings (out of 10) for this clash:
Barcelona:
Marc Andre ter-Stegen: 6 – Made some crucial saves but should have dealt with Rashford’s equalising goal
Ronald Araujo: 6.5 – Surprisingly playing at right-back, Araujo was decent in dealing with the pressure from United’s wingers
Jules Kounde: 4 – Poor passing throughout the evening and struggled to contain Rashford. Then scored an own goal
Marcos Alonso: 7 – Could have done better for United’s first goal but he scored the opening goal in the game. Was okay overall
Jordi Alba: 6 – Solid performance but lacked the final ball
Franck Kessie: 5.5 – Did majority of the dirty work in midfield, but contributed nothing apart from that
Frenkie De Jong: 5.5 – Fantastic first half performance, disappeared in the second half and was outplayed by United’s midfield
Pedri: 5 – Was looking good until he was substituted with injury in the first half
Raphinha: 8.5 – Barcelona’s best player on the night and was rewarded with a goal
Robert Lewandowski: 6 – Unlike him to have a poor game, but that could be more credit to United’s efforts in limiting supply to him. Did well whenever he had the ball
Gavi: 6 – Was bright for most of the game, but earned him a silly yellow card that saw him suspended for the second leg
Subs:
Sergi Roberto: 5 – Subbed in for Pedri in the first half and proved why Xavi doesn’t start him
Andreas Christensen: 6 – Brought in composure and balance to Barcelona’s defence late in the game
Alejandro Balde: 6 – Interesting addition considering Balde loves to attack, but he did balance his left-back role pretty well
Ansu Fati: 6 – Was decent, but missed a big chance
Ferran Torres: N/A – Not enough time to make an impact.
Manchester United:
David De Gea: 6 – Was okay and could do little for the goals Barcelona scored
Aaron Wan-Bissaka: 6.5 – Was poor in defence but provided one of the best chances to score for United in the game.
Raphael Varane: 6 – Partly to be blamed for Raphinha’s goal.
Luke Shaw: 6 – Playing in a new role, Shaw learnt from the couple of times he was exposed by Raphinha and Lewandowski
Tyrel Malacia: 6 – United got so much space on the wings and it could have been utilised better by Malacia, but he failed to do so.
Casemiro: 7.5 – Seriously, where would Manchester United be without his presence? The way Casemiro managed the game was a sight to behold.
Fred: 6.5 – After being responsible for Barcelona’s opening goal, Fred stepped up a level and also assisted a goal.
Jadon Sancho: 5 – Did not make most of the chances he got to score in the first half. Withered off later in the game
Bruno Fernandes: 6.5 – Created a great chance for Weghorst as well as played a hand in the own goal scored by Jules Kounde
Wout Weghorst: 5 – Worked hard throughout the game but missed a one-on-one goal against Ter Stegen.
Marcus Rashford: 9 – Best player on the pitch by a mile. Scored his goal in tremendous fashion to give Manchester United the lead.
Subs: Alejandro Garnacho: 5.5 – Did not get much involved, but was energetic.
Every comment made by Erik ten Hag and Xavi after Man Utd and Barcelona’s exciting 2-2 draw in the Europa League
Manchester United went to Camp Nou and almost brought home a result in what was a game played at a high level in terms of quality.
Both teams were adamant to dominate each other throughout the game which led us to witness some incredible end-to-end footballing action.
Marcos Alonso and Raphinha scored for Barcelona whereas United scored courtesy of Marcus Rashford and a Jules Kounde own goal.
Both managers were extremely pleased not to lose and made some interesting comments after the game. Let’s take a look!
Xavi – Barcelona manager
Xavi was impressed by United and acknowledged the incredible effort put on the night and spoke highly of the Red Devils’ approach. He also appreciated his Barcelona team that went toe-to-toe, matching United with each stride. Here’s what Xavi said:
“United are one of the best teams in Europe. As a block, as a team, they work together. They are properly coached by a good coach and we competed against them, with a great attitude at the same intensity, equalling [them] in many ways.
“I like the rush in the end because, in the past, we would go down mentally when behind. The stakes will be high at Old Trafford but I’m proud we gave our all today.”
Xavi added, “They are amazing in transition so we wanted to avoid transitions by putting pressure on. We made it sometimes but they are good players – Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes is very good with long-distance passes. I think they are high-level players and we have played against a major team.
“Just respect to him [Erik ten Hag] but we also generated many opportunities. They have to believe this as it was a very well matched game, a very equal game. I have a bittersweet feeling as we could have won against this great team and scored many goals as well.”
Revealing his thoughts on the second leg, Xavi said: “Well, on paper, this is going to be a very intense game at Old Trafford. Even more intense. We go to Old Trafford to compete again and will see what happens. It was a tight game against a tough rival, one of the best in Europe. So I’m currently proud of my team, in spite of the draw.”
“We were looking to surprise them [with the line-up], not to respond to Manchester United’s approach. They have a powerful armoury and a great team with high-level players and an amazing coach.”
Erik ten Hag – Manchester United manager
Speaking overall on the game, Erik ten Hag said, “I think we dictated the game. Apart from maybe 15 minutes of the first half, we had some difficulties, but for the rest, we dictated the game and we outplayed [them], so many chances, so I was a little bit disappointed that in half-time it was 0-0 because we should have scored.
“The opportunities they had, we created by ourselves. But I think it was a great game, two attacking teams, I think it was really Champions League [level] and even more than that. So I really enjoyed the game a lot. In the end, 2-2, and we have to finish it at Old Trafford.”
Speaking on the refereeing decisions, Ten Hag said, “I think it was a clear foul on Rashy. You can discuss if it’s in or outside the box, but then [if it’s outside] it’s a red card, because he was one-on-one with the keeper. So it’s a big influence, not only on this game, but in this round. It can’t be, the referee can’t make such a mistake. I asked the referee why. So he said it was outside the box and it was no foul. I said I think the linesman and the referee are in a very good position to see.
“I think we have the VAR. So I think it’s not good and was a really bad decision. I can’t understand – maybe they were impressed by the pressure Barcelona made but that can’t be at the highest European level.”
Ten Hag also commented that his team are not over-reliant on Marcus Rashford as he said, “He (Rashford) is so unstoppable at this moment, such a high belief for scoring goals, which we are happy with of course. But credit to the team as they get him every time in the right position. As I said before, we have other players who can score – Bruno, Jadon can score as well.
“Wout, of course, and they will score. In the end, it doesn’t matter who scores but we have to score, as you say, in such a game when you create five, six or seven 100 per cent chances. You have to finish them more than that so it’s quite clear.”
On being asked about the second leg, Ten Hag said, “I can’t think about that [the second leg] in this moment. I think about Leicester, it’s all about Leicester. It’s a big game again and they are in good shape. They have two wins in a row so I know it’s going to be a tough game but we have to be ready. If we are ready we have a good chance to win.”
