94% passing, 100% crosses, 6/7 duels: £38m star was United’s best player vs Real Sociedad alongside Joshua – opinion | OneFootball

Manchester United shared the spoils against Real Sociedad during the first leg of the Europa League round of 16 clash on Thursday night.

The Red Devils struggled to break the deadlock in the opening half, and they eventually grabbed the lead through a Joshua Zirkzee strike in the 57th minute.

The club pushed for the second goal, but Sociedad equalised out of the blue after receiving a fortuitous penalty for a Bruno Fernandes handball.

Fernandes was in close proximity to the player, but the referee gave the spot-kick after VAR intervened.

Sociedad were the better side in the final quarter of the game. Goalkeeper Andre Onana made a superb left-handed save to deny Orri Oskarsson.

Zirkzee was undoubtedly the man of the match after his crucial goal before the hour mark, but Matthijs de Ligt also stood out with his defensive display.

The centre-back made a crucial intervention before the half-time interval. He slipped towards the end but cleared the ball to deny Oskarsson a big chance on goal.

Overall, he won six out of his seven duels contested at the Reale Arena. He had a passing accuracy of 94 percent and completed 100 percent of his crosses.

The £38 million-rated star also made three clearances, three recoveries and a solitary tackle.

The 25-year-old received a 7/10 rating from Manchester Evening News for his showing.

De Ligt had a mixed start to his Red Devils career but has certainly stepped up in recent months.

Zirkzee and De Ligt were recently left out of the Netherlands’ provisional squad for the Nations League games.

The duo sent a big message to manager Ronald Koeman with their performances last night.

Stats from Sofascore.com & Transfermarkt.com

Article written by Sri Aswin .