Manchester United player ratings in 2-1 win vs Crystal Palace as Casemiro sent off

Manchester United returned to league play for the first time in almost two weeks and marked it with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Crystal Palace.

The first half saw Bruno Fernandes dispatch an early penalty, with United finally being given one after having a lot of shouts denied of late. The rest of the half was sloppy at times but United remained by far the better side.

In the second half United went 2-1 up with an excellent finish from Rashford, who continued his hot streak. Although soon it turned bad, with Casemiro being shown a red for violent conduct and Palace pulling one back.

Here’s how UtdDistrict rated the players:

David De Gea – 6/10

Solid enough, but the refusal to claim crosses puts United under a lot of unnecessary pressure.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6.5/10

Final action still needs work, but is improving in possession.

Raphaël Varane – 8/10

Marshalled the backline as he does every game. Makes defending look easy. Dealt with the team having 10 men admirably.

Lisandro Martínez – 8/10

Another extremely strong performance. Him and Varane are a perfect complement for one another. Dealt with being a man down excellently, Man of the Match.

BEST IN THE LEAGUE. 🔝 pic.twitter.com/HB9Yiwc4Sd

— UtdDistrict (@UtdDistrict) February 4, 2023

Luke Shaw – 6.5/10

Had a sloppy first half but set up Rashford well in the second.

Casemiro – 5.5/10

Was having a standard performance before picking up an unfortunate red card with a silly moment.

Fred – 7/10

Had a good opportunity to score after making a good near-post dart. Offered a lot of energy and positivity as always. Covered for two remarkably when he lost his midfield partner.

Antony – 7/10

Another positive performance, was especially nice to see his attempt to score with his right foot in the first half.

Bruno Fernandes – 8/10

Put away a very cool penalty, and was probably United’s most positive player outside of that too. Led the team admirably when they needed to dig deep at the end.

Marcus Rashford – 7.5/10

His hunger for goals is at an all-time high and that very much showed today, sometimes leading to suboptimal decisions however it paid off in the end with a goal to take him to 10 league goals for the season. Won the penalty early on too.

Wout Weghorst – 7/10

Has settled into life in Manchester very well, looks better with every passing game. Got a good hour under his belt.

Substitutes:

Alejandro Garnacho – 6.5/10

Came on for Weghorst at the hour mark, and within five minutes played a key goal in Marcus Rashford’s goal. Provided an outlet, although was subbed off late as United defended the lead.

Marcel Sabitzer – N/A

Came on for his debut, tough to judge given circumstances. Helped see out the game.

Harry Maguire – N/A

Brought on to see out the game, helped United deal with Palace’s late attacks.

Victor Lindelöf – N/A

See above.