At the beginning and end United were a mess – but the result was determined by what happened in between those two spells, as a pair of predatory strikes from Anthony Martial and one from Juan Mata earned a victory that sent Louis Van Gaal’s side up to second in the Premier Leaguetable.


There is no precedent for any teenager trying to justify an initial investment of £36m in his talent but Martial is going about it in expert fashion, his two sharp finishes on his first Premier League start taking his tally to three goals in two league appearances since his record transfer from Monaco. The French youngster radiated elegant menace whenever United could bring him into the reckoning, which was not quite as often as they would have liked.