Player Ratings- Manchester Derby, Old Trafford, 12.02.11

Starting XI

Edwin Van Der Sar- 6

The Dutch stopper had little to do in the match and could not have anticipated Silva’s freakish goal. His distribution, as usual, was impeccable and he organized the defence well for the set pieces.

John O’Shea- 6.5

Taking the place of Rafael at RB, the Irishman was effective going forward and kept Kolorav at bay in the first half. The utility-man struggled more so when David Silva switched to the wing but this change did not stop him getting forward (he made twice as many passes as Evra).

Chris Smalling- 7.5

Replacing the injured Rio Ferdinand, the young English CB stepped into partner Vidic and performed superbly up against former-red Carlos Tevez.  He won 11 out 12 of his tackles and 5 out of 5 aerial duels, nullifying the Blue’s attacks expertly. (Find a nice article on Smalling @ http://writtenoffside.blogspot.com/2011/02/smalling-makes-big-impression-united-vs.html )

Smalling for Rio, A Promising Replacement…

Nemanja Vidic- 7

The Serb was as assured as always and seemed to know exactly how to handle the Argentinian, having trained with him for two seasons. The City goal was freakish and could not be blamed on any defensive frailties; regardless, United will have been disappointed to lose the clean sheet.

Patrice Evra- 6.5

A quietly impressive performance from the French defender that would have made the blue side of Manchester jealous. Whereas City are struggling to find a consistent LB, despite purchasing the £18m Kolarov, United have one of the best full backs in European footballer. Throughout he defended well and kept the lively SWP at bay. A solid performance.

Nani- 9

On any other day people would have been screaming about the winger’s superb goal. Nani’s performance was once again excellent as our stand out performer in the first half and my man of the match. Nani has now safely stepped out of Ronaldo’s shadow and emerged as the country’s most talented right winger. It will be interesting to see where he will play when Antonio Valencia returns to full fitness.

Nani has finally found the consistency to make him world-classs

Darren Fletcher- 6

A battling performance from the Scot once again in the derby. In the first half it looked like he may have scored another header against the Blues, after his two last season, but he steered it straight at Joe Hart. A good shift in the middle of the park.

Paul Scholes- 6.5

Despite some uncharacteristically poor passes, the midfield maestro still managed to show why Xavi thinks he is the best midfielder of the past twenty years- a simply amazing player.

Anderson- 5

The Brazilian, who signed a new 5 year contract this term, had another indifferent day as he struggled to get into the game. Being entrusted with a start in such a big game, the talented CM failed to influence United’s play going forward or coming back. He still seems short of match fitness and will be hoping just for a run of games till the end of the season so he can build up for a flying start in August.

Ryan Giggs- 7

Well, he just keeps getting better. Playing in his millionth Manchester derby the Welsh Wizard played well against the admittedly excellent Micah Richard. With his close control and incisive runs, the winger continues to make a mockery of the ageing process, putting in a performance you’d expect from someone twenty years his junior- unbelievable!

It had to be against City didn’t it

Wayne Rooney- 7 (With One Moment of Magic)

Well… His Performance… Who Cares…

*That Goal*

Substitutes

Dimitar Berbatov- 6

Having only scored one goal for United from the bench the Bulgarian was perhaps a surpising substitution, with Owen & Hernandez on the bench but he played well- giving us a much needed presence up top. A nice cameo appearance.

Michael Carrick- 6

Entering the field after Rooney’s magical finish, the CM bounced onto the field with OT rocking and kept our game tidy for the last fifteen minutes- a good job!

Referee

Andre Marriner- 8

The 40 year-old West Midlands official remained inconspicuous, a great compliment, throughout the 90 minutes while retaining great match control. Having impressed in the Chelsea v Liverpool fixture last week, Marriner & his team were rewarded with another big game and he produced another excellent display- with no controversial decisions again. An excellent display.