[Devil may care]

First half was ploddy but the second half was a nice improvement. Schweinsteiger, Mkhi and Martial were very good. That third goal was a thing of beauty, classic United!

 

[SqueakyWeasel]

Shearer: It's official … there's more to come from this United team!

 

[dove]

Good result, gave some minutes for youngsters and rested our key players. Couldn't ask for more

 

[efraim]

What a wonderful counter-attacking goal the third goal was. Classic United!

 

[NinjaZombie]

That Mkhitaryan goal is a thing of beauty. A counter attacking goal just like the ones we used to score under Alex Ferguson. Brilliant to see. Those kind of counters were a rarity in LVG's time here.

Also, BFS!

 

[Hugh Jass]

Thought Van Gaal had been rehired based on the first half. Much better in the second half. Martial or Bastian would be my man of the match.

 

[simonhch]

just seen Smalling's post match interview and embarrassing excuse for a moustache. Should be fined.

 

[Carolina Red]

just seen Smalling's post match interview and embarrassing excuse for a moustache. Should be fined.

That's what I came here to post!

Did he shave without a mirror, lose a bet, or was that intentional?

 

[GifLord]

We need a gif for that Mata/Martial interplay at the end

@GifLord ?

Was that before the 5th goal(disallowed) was scored ?

edit: nvm found it - give me 2min

 

[Manny]

11 shots
4 on target
4 goals

 

[Attila]

The unbeaten run continues

 

[bosnian_red]

Shite first half, good second half, everyone pretty much played well, though Mkhitaryan, Schweinsteiger and Martial the obvious stand outs in terms of their improvement throughout the game. Pretty easy game overall though.

 

[simonhch]

That's what I came here to post!

Did he shave without a mirror, lose a bet, or was that intentional?

Looks intentional. Two little lines. Symmetrical. Shameful.

 

[Ramshock]

good 2nd half...needed to thump somebody

 

[LLMU]

The third was typical Utd of old with fast counter attack. Overall very good second half.

 

[December_16]

The unbeaten run continues

I agreed, I only saw two goals in the Hull game

 

[Paul the Wolf]

Comfortable win.
Schweini and Martial very good
Mkhi second half

Got the correct score, at last

Slow start but better when Martial moved to the left, more penetration in the second half
Schweini seemed to be everywhere. Given Martial, 2 assists and unlucky with disallowed goal, MOM and hope he stays in the team

 

[Irrational.]

As bad as we were in the first half, that's how good we were in the second.

Lovely performance. Shaw and BFS grew into the game, and I think Martial has done enough to be selected for the next game.

 

[DadiBG]

Switched it on around 5 minutes in and until the 20th we were looking well sub-par. Wigan had more desire, were chasing and closing us down everywhere and we couldn't do anything. And then we turned it around - maybe they got tired, maybe we actually thought it'd be a nice idea to stop sitting on our hands, maybe both.

At any rate, it was a great showing by someone who I thought no longer has a place in the squad and should be moved on - Bastian was amazing in the Carrick role. Calm and collected, receiving posession from the back 4 and recycling it neatly, starting our moves and directing from the back. Mata and Mkhi also played a part (surprised to see Mata get so many low ratings). Both of them came inside a lot of the times, were looking for the ball, switched positions - along with Rooney and Martial. The four of them seemed a very fluid, if lightweight front four which is always good to see, all of the put in great performances for me.

Happy the big Fella got a goal as well. He's not a great player by any means, but he never fails to show desire and is always willing to dig himself out against criticism. Another neat showing from him, he's not the type of midfielder we need to chase titles and trophies , but I'm happy to have him in the squad.

 

[b82REZ]

Man, that Wigan player's name is
Max Power.

MAX POWER.

This lead to me watching Simpsons clips on YouTube.

 

[Zoo]

 

[Gause]

I hope we can play more of those explosive counters. Really felt like the old United. Amazing to think that except Mkhi that was basically last season's squad.

 

[gorky_utd]

Nice comfortable win.When is the draw for next round?

 

[Esquire]

Schweinsteiger should definitely be an option for Premier League matches.

Martial deserves to play in the next match.

Easy win for us and we got better as the game got on. Good to see us finally scoring more goals albeit it is against wigan.

I really hope we replicate the same against hull. You just know they are coming to defend in the same way wigan have today.

Its about time we smashed some team in the prem like we deserve to.

Agree with all the above but don't get the mad love for Basti though. He's ok at this stage in his career. I think he did well but did lose a couple of balls under pressure in the 1st half when the Wigan mids well fresh. Should figure in Mou's plans but must be 4th choice after Pogba, Ander and Carrick.

Fellaini wasn't bad today either. Should be a cup specialist and plan B in league matches.

 

[afrocentricity]

It's like it's some sort of a tradition to beat Wigan 4-0.

Ya the thought did cross my mind...

 

[JustAFan]

Thought we might fall behind the first 30 minutes or so but once the players adapted to their pressure we took control

 

[Sandikan]

That's how you do a fair bit of rotation, but still leave a team capable of smashing a lower league opposition.

 

[SqueakyWeasel]

That right? Beckham on the 75th Anniversary of Desert Island Discs right now?

 

[mazhar13]

A poor first half was more than made up for by a much better second half. It seemed like Mourinho knew that Joyce's Wigan would be constantly running around, keeping track of our players, and closing down spaces constantly, so he tried to have his team play at a slower pace to tire them out. Unfortunately, there was no passing between the lines from our deeper players, and no one was there to carry the ball forward into space either. There were many opportunities in the first half when a pass could have been played into Mkhitaryan or Mata in space, but our deeper players were quite reluctant to do so, particularly Smalling and Fellaini, who've shown how poor they actually are with their passing and football technique when compared to the standard they should be playing at.

The late first-half goal did a world of good for our confidence. Until then, we were poor on the ball but were starting to grow into the game as Wigan got deeper and more tired, and players like Shaw, Mkhitaryan, Martial, Mata, and Rooney were starting to grow into the game in the first half. Schweinsteiger was also becoming more influential with his passing as they started dropping deeper, stretching their compact shape some more and continuously testing them with his penetrative passes. In the end, it was a sweet cross from Schweini on the right to Fellaini that got us going, and to be fair, it was coming given how we were slowly creeping into the final third as the match wore on. This is where Fellaini (Ibra as well) can be quite effective; if the opposition is sitting deep and putting numbers at the back, it's not possible to just break through their middle. Get the ball wide, get numbers into the box, and cross it in (not a ground cross, but one in the air), and that was a textbook first goal that Fellaini scored.

The second half was much better from us as we started playing at a higher pace and transitioned quicker than we did in the first half. Mourinho knew that Wigan would push up more, so he told the players to up their tempo and quicken their transitions, and that resulted in better football and a great counterattacking goal by Mkhitaryan. It also helped that Martial moved to the left as he was struggling playing up front as a striker. His hold-up play in the first half was quite poor, and he was unable to face his goal enough times to make him dangerous. I think what this match showed is that he's more of a left inside forward than a striker, and his two assists from the left are a proper indication of that. In that sense, I'm happy to see that we, at least, have a proper left-sided threat that wasn't seen since Giggs retired.

For me, Schweini was MOTM with how he dictated the match and controlled the tempo, but I'll give special mentions to Martial, who was dangerous on the left, Mata for his movement and link-up play, and Mkhitaryan for the threat he had in carrying the ball forward as well as his penetrative passes. Rooney was getting pressed quite hard throughout the match, but he always ensured that our attacks kept going, and his movement was excellent as well, constantly stretching the Wigan back line. It was also nice to see Shaw, Fosu-Mensah, Tuanzebe, and Joel Pereira get some game time, too, though Shaw looked quite rusty, and Fosu-Mensah showed once again that he's not a right back.

Overall, an initially tough game became a nice, comfortable victory, and we roll on to the fifth round high in confidence.

 

[Godfather]

We need a gif of the backheel interplay between Mata and Mhiki. From memory it was shortly after the 3rd goal.

That was brilliant. Think it was Mhiki and Martial though.

 

[Gause]

Agree with all the above but don't get the mad love for Basti though. He's ok at this stage in his career. I think he did well but did lose a couple of balls under pressure in the 1st half when the Wigan mids well fresh. Should figure in Mou's plans but must be 4th choice after Pogba, Ander and Carrick.

Fellaini wasn't bad today either. Should be a cup specialist and plan B in league matches.

I agree, I'm one of Basti fans but I dont think he deserves the MOTM for that. It was Mkhi for me. He displayed an almost flawless performance all around.

 

[JustAFan]

I hope we can play more of those explosive counters. Really felt like the old United. Amazing to think that except Mkhi that was basically last season's squad.

It helped that Wigan were not just parking the bus, gave us room to actually counter attack

 

[12OunceEpilogue]

Barring the first 35-40 minutes, a very pleasing match for a variety of reasons. I'm looking forward to The One Show for the first time in my life.

 

[Android1974]

I notice Rooney is currently the lowest rated player. Is it just me or is this absolute bollocks?

It is. He was quite good on the second half.

 

[Pavl3n]

Above all it was a good win.
Happy to see TFM, Bastian, Shaw and Martial start.

Martial looked like he could be a bit sharper. Yes, he got two assists, but there were a couple of runs where I believe he could've been more composed and probably could've beaten the players on the wing. However that assist for Mikhi was exactly what he's been missing from his game. He seemed a bit unhappy at the end, but I will give it to the disallowed goal.

Mikhi - as well, played well, but could've been a notch more composed. That miss the first half - that was a sitter. Should've been in.

TFM - I think he was solid. Went forward on few occasions, looked good in defence.

Bastian - I think he played very good. He didn't look as convincing, his passes seemed as if don't have enough pace, looked a bit short, but I think he sharpened after 15-20 minutes. A goal and assist, dictated well the game. What really pleased me in his game was the pass to set up the 3-0 goal. What I see in Carrick is the ability to turn just won possession into a dangerous attack and Bastian was exactly what he did with that pass. Good assist. I am really pleased.

Rooney - He tried, but he couldn't. A game to forget for himself. Don't want to say too much about him, even though I believe he could've performed better.

Overall the team played well - despite the first 20-25 minutes. Happy we materialized that spell at the end of the first half. Satisfied. However we played Wigan - in the lower stands of Championship. Happy some guys got playing time, but don't want to get carried away.

 

[togg]

A poor first half was more than made up for by a much better second half. It seemed like Mourinho knew that Joyce's Wigan would be constantly running around, keeping track of our players, and closing down spaces constantly, so he tried to have his team play at a slower pace to tire them out. Unfortunately, there was no passing between the lines from our deeper players, and no one was there to carry the ball forward into space either. There were many opportunities in the first half when a pass could have been played into Mkhitaryan or Mata in space, but our deeper players were quite reluctant to do so, particularly Smalling and Fellaini, who've shown how poor they actually are with their passing and football technique when compared to the standard they should be playing at.

The late first-half goal did a world of good for our confidence. Until then, we were poor on the ball but were starting to grow into the game as Wigan got deeper and more tired, and players like Shaw, Mkhitaryan, Martial, Mata, and Rooney were starting to grow into the game in the first half. Schweinsteiger was also becoming more influential with his passing as they started dropping deeper, stretching their compact shape some more and continuously testing them with his penetrative passes. In the end, it was a sweet cross from Schweini on the right to Fellaini that got us going, and to be fair, it was coming given how we were slowly creeping into the final third as the match wore on. This is where Fellaini (Ibra as well) can be quite effective; if the opposition is sitting deep and putting numbers at the back, it's not possible to just break through their middle. Get the ball wide, get numbers into the box, and cross it in (not a ground cross, but one in the air), and that was a textbook first goal that Fellaini scored.

The second half was much better from us as we started playing at a higher pace and transitioned quicker than we did in the first half. Mourinho knew that Wigan would push up more, so he told the players to up their tempo and quicken their transitions, and that resulted in better football and a great counterattacking goal by Mkhitaryan. It also helped that Martial moved to the left as he was struggling playing up front as a striker. His hold-up play in the first half was quite poor, and he was unable to face his goal enough times to make him dangerous. I think what this match showed is that he's more of a left inside forward than a striker, and his two assists from the left are a proper indication of that. In that sense, I'm happy to see that we, at least, have a proper left-sided threat that wasn't seen since Giggs retired.

For me, Schweini was MOTM with how he dictated the match and controlled the tempo, but I'll give special mentions to Martial, who was dangerous on the left, Mata for his movement and link-up play, and Mkhitaryan for the threat he had in carrying the ball forward as well as his penetrative passes. Rooney was getting pressed quite hard throughout the match, but he always ensured that our attacks kept going, and his movement was excellent as well, constantly stretching the Wigan back line. It was also nice to see Shaw, Fosu-Mensah, Tuanzebe, and Joel Pereira get some game time, too, though Shaw looked quite rusty, and Fosu-Mensah showed once again that he's not a right back.

Overall, an initially tough game became a nice, comfortable victory, and we roll on to the fifth round high in confidence.

Trying to be a journo? Listen..on the cafe.....after a game..it's probably better not to write too much, even though it's well thought out. It's just...well..we won...and people will just read short stuff..probably because they are having a beer or well.....doing something... we just can't read too much. Tomorrow yes.....

 

[0161_UNITED]

That was brilliant. Think it was Mhiki and Martial though.

I think you're right. Martial had a nice match, IMO.

 

[Triple.Threat]

we were struggling in the first half but credit to Jose and the player who turned things around in the 2nd half.

to be honest i thought Fellaini and Basti were the worst midfield we could eve come up with. Glad we were able to make it to the next round with both of them on the score sheet.

 

[Android1974]

11 shots
4 on target
4 goals

Much less shots than our usual, but very improved goal ratio.

 

[Mockney]

We need a gif of the backheel interplay between Mata and Mhiki. From memory it was shortly after the 3rd goal.

That was brilliant. Think it was Mhiki and Martial though.

I think you're right..

I don't know how you've all managed to be wrong. But you have.