Manchester United bounced back from their crushing 7-0 defeat to Liverpool in style as Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes scored in a 4-1 win over Real Betis in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie on Thursday.
Erik ten Hag's team took an early lead through Rashford and although Betis equalised, the hosts dominated the second half to secure a morale-boosting victory.
"I think we played well, the second half especially. 4-1. Good goals. Good performance also to give something to the fans, and they gave us something back as well because they were right behind us," Ten Hag told BT Sport. "Very grateful after Sunday."
After the break, United's most fiercely criticised stars in recent days made the difference. Antony curled a brilliant shot into the top corner before Fernandes, who Ten Hag named again as captain, headed in Luke Shaw's corner.
"Bruno was brilliant today," added Ten Hag. "He led the team from the first minute by his game in possession, making the rhythm of the game and scored a goal so I am happy."
Player ratings from the match can be seen in the picture gallery below. To view the next image, click on the arrows or swipe if on a mobile device.
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MANCHESTER UNITED RATINGS: David De Gea - 5. Beaten by Perez’s stunning 32nd minute half volley. Passed the ball to Rodriguez on 43 and it came back and hit his post – one of three poor first half passes. Thankfully, the players in front of him were far better in the second period. Getty -
Diogo Dalot - 5. Poor pass back let Betis in before the counter-attack that followed led to United going ahead. Off at half time and he could have no complaints about that. Getty -
Lisandro Martinez - 7. Won the ball back which led to the counter in an open match. 85 minutes later, he sneaked in at the front post to almost meet a corner which would’ve made it 5-1. Getty -
Raphael Varane - 7. Good dummy movement on the corner before Fernandes headed in the third. Steady at the back under the first half Betis pressure. EPA -
Luke Shaw - 7. Nowhere near Perez when he scored and looked tired in the first half, but his corner set up Fernandes’ bullet header on 57. PA -
Casemiro - 7. Brilliant pass to Rashford in the lead up to the opening goal. Set up Weghorst too. Caught with the ball after nine minutes, tried an overhead kick on 29. Lost possession in the run up to the Betis equaliser. Pass to Fernandes in build up for second. EPA -
Fred - 7. Sloppy in the first half, much better in the second. Side-footed a late effort on goal as United finished off an excellent second half. Getty -
Bruno Fernandes - 8. Heavily criticised since Sunday, but played centrally, dominated and drove forward to put the early ball in towards Rashford for his goal. Set up Antony for the second, then scored the third, running across the defenders after 57 to head in. Booked. EPA -
Antony - 7. Quiet in the first half, though he set up Rashford on 28, but his best moment was a curling left foot finish to put United back ahead. Best moment of the game, but he could have squared the ball rather than shot in a 63rd minute chance. EPA -
Marcus Rashford - 7. On his favoured left and put United ahead after six minutes with a tremendous, clean shot from close range. Side-footed shot well saved by Bravo on 28. He’s got 26 goals this season, easily his best return for United. Getty -
Wout Weghorst - 7. Headed into the goal – but the move was offside. Took another header on target after 10, then met a 16th minute Shaw cross before shooting. Shot well over on 27 minutes when he should have scored. As he should on 75. Great pass to Antony on 79. Finally scored on 82 and was delighted. Booked for dissent. Getty -
SUBS: Aaron Wan-Bissaka (Dalot HT) - 7. Did well once again in front of the 72,998 crowd. Effective with Antony in front of him. AFP -
Jadon Sancho (Rashford 64') - 6. Set up Fred for a shot on goal. EPA -
Tyrell Malacia (Shaw 64') - 6. Did fine. Reuters -
Scott McTominay (Fred 81') - 6. His shot on goal was saved before Weghorst scored the rebound. Getty -
Facundo Pellistri (Antony 81') - 7. Immediately did superbly to set up the fourth goal. Slipped into a heavy challenge into Luis Felipe and forced a decent save with a 92nd minute shot. Getty -
REAL BETIS RATINGS: Claudio Bravo – 6. Beaten twice in the opening six minutes, first by Weghorst’s offside effort, then by Rashford. Alert to deny Rashford in two one-on-ones shortly afterwards and made a great late stop from Antony, but undid a decent display with a questionable part in Fernandes’s goal. EPA -
Youssouf Sabaly – 6. Had a tough time with Shaw’s forward runs early on, but took revenge by nutmegging the England defender and grew in confidence thereafter. Faced plenty of tests in the second half and comported himself relatively well. Getty -
German Pezzella – 5. Failed to impose himself, with the bulk of the preventative work falling on Felipe’s shoulders. Indebted to his central defensive partner that the hosts weren’t out of sight by half-time, and was arguably slow to react to Fernandes’s movement for United’s third. PA -
Luiz Felipe – 7. Punished for a half-hit clearance as Rashford smashed in the opener, but atoned soon afterwards with a goal-saving flick on Weghorst’s shot, then another decent desperate lunge to stop Fernandes. The pick of the visiting defenders. Reuters -
Abner Vinicius – 6. Heavily involved during a duel with Antony. Made a crucial intervention to stop United’s No21 side-footing into an open goal shortly before half-time, but was made to pay for showing Antony onto his favoured left foot for United’s second. AP -
William Carvalho – 7. The veteran midfielder showed fine reading of the game for the most part but had little answer in the second half as the visitors were totally overpowered. Getty -
Guido Rodriguez – 7. The perfect foil for Carvalho, limiting the influence of Casemiro. After the break, however, had nothing like the same influence and was withdrawn after United had pulled away. AP -
Luiz Henrique – 5. The talented youngster caught Casemiro in possession early on. Looked lost at times and struggled with his decision-making as Betis failed to join enough attacking dots. PA -
Joaquin – 4. Betis’s veteran captain was limited in his involvement and, aside from a couple of set-piece deliveries, was on the fringes of the game. Might have had more impact from the bench than the start. Reuters -
Juanmi – 5. Hardly in the game for the majority of the evening, but popped up just after the half hour with a neat assist for Perez’s well-taken leveller. Couldn’t inspire his side to find a foothold in the second half, though. Getty -
Ayoze Perez – 6. Surprisingly included in place of Iglesias but, after a frustrating start on the edge of proceedings, swerved in a superb equaliser to net his first goal for the club. Provided a thorn in United’s side before the hosts took full control. EPA -
SUBS: Sergio Canales (Joaquin 59') – 5. Back from injury but looked ring-rusty – though he was hardly introduced into the kindest setting. Will look to wield his influence in the return next week. Getty -
Aitor Ruibal (Luiz Henrique, 59') – 5. Like Canales, won’t thank his manager for the timing of his introduction, and hardly had a sniff of action. AFP -
Borja Iglesias (Ayoze Perez, 65') – 5. A surprise exclusion from the starting XI, and his frustration continued after his introduction due to sustained poor service. AFP -
Andres Guardado (Guido Rodriguez, 66') – 5. The veteran midfielder was introduced to steady the rocking Betis ship but found himself off the pace and unable to turn the tide. Willian Jose (Juanmi, 80') – N/A. EPA
