Tottenham Hotspurs’ rotten luck with FA Cup semi-finals continued on Saturday as Manchester United edged them 2-1 at Wembley Stadium to book their berth in the final.
It was eight time unlucky for the Lilyhwites, who will yet again end a season without a trophy, while United are in sight of their 13th FA Cup crown.
Dele Alli had given the North Londoners the lead early on but Alexis Sanchez responded for the Red Devils and Ander Herrera would come up with a winner in the second-half in what was an engaging affair in the English capital.
Here are The Statesman’s player ratings from an high-stakes affair at Wembley:
Manchester United
David de Gea
Didn’t have much to do, to be honest. Wasn’t at fault for the opener, either.
Rating: 6/10
Antonio Valencia
Son had the beating of him in the early exchanges and while the Ecuadorian recovered to put in a typically tidy shift, he should have been sent off early on for that horror challenge on Dele Alli.
Simply for that, gets a low rating.
Rating: 5/10
Chris Smalling
Positioning was questioned for Alli’s opener, but recovered to have a solid game.
Teamed up nicely with Jones to shackle Harry Kane.
Rating: 7/10
Phil Jones
Like his defensive partner, started slowly but really came into his own as the game progressed.
Made some key stops and was crucial in keeping Kane quiet.
Rating: 8/10
Ashley Young
Set-piece deliveries and crosses on the whole were found lacking but defensively did an okay job.
Rating: 6/10
Nemanja Matic
Not the Serbian enforcer’s finest outing in a United jersey, but by no means his worst one either.
Consistent from minute one to the last, did his job of shielding the defence fairly well.
Rating: 7/10
Ander Herrera
United’s standout midfielder, Herrera never stopped running and was rewarded with his efforts with a well-taken goal which turned out to the opener.
His all-action displays have seem him get an extended run in the team and the Spaniard now deserves to remain in the starting XI till the end of the season at least.
Rating: 8/10
Paul Pogba
The way he shrugged Mousa Dembele off the ball was awe-inspiring and his inch-perfect cross for Alexis Sanchez’s opener got the fans off their seats, but more than intermittent glimpses are expected from the flashy Frenchman.
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Still, a positive showing that augurs well and will silence some of the gossipmongers.
Rating: 7/10
Alexis Sanchez
Easily the Man of the Match, not just for his excellent opener and the fact that he played a big role in the winner, but for his tenacity and desire to win.
Slowly, but surely the Chilean seems to be coming into top form and that will cheer the United faithful to no end as the business end of the season draws near.
Rating: 9/10
Jesse Lingard
Drew plenty of fouls, worked hard but didn’t really have much to show for it at the end.
Rating: 6/10
Romelu Lukaku
First-touch was awful again.
The burly Belgian made a nuisance of himself in the box, but he needs to start scoring/assisting in big games such as these for a striker is paid to make the difference in the , not just run himself into the ground.
Rating: 6/10
Substitutes
Matteo Darmian
Replaced the injured Valencia with 10 minutes left.
Rating: N/A
Marcus Rashford
Came on for the fading Lingard and while he did have a real chance to seal the points, lacked composure in the end.
Rating: N/A
Marouane Fellaini
Mourinho sent him on in the dying stages as United sought to see the game out.
Rating: N/A
Tottenham Hotspur
Michel Vorm
Not really at fault for either goal, but it can be said he might have done better for the second.
On the whole, not a very confident showing from the Dutchman.
Rating: 5/10
Kieran Trippier
Had a decent game, didn’t really have too many one-on-one duels with Alexis Sanchez and while his final ball wasn’t the best, the Englishman did alright over the course of 90 minutes.
Rating: 6/10
Jan Vertonghen
Vertonghen had a okay game as he marshalled compatriot Lukaku fairly well, but maybe he could have done better on offensive set-pieces?
Rating: 6/10
Davinson Sanchez
The young Colombian continues to look like an astute signing despite the hefty sum involved and he had a good game against a side that just about made their chances count.
Rating: 6/10
Ben Davies
While he did get forward a couple of times, couldn’t find his teammate as he usually does. Set-pieces were decent but the Welshman did a admirable job defensively.
Rating: 6/10
Mousa Dembele
A shocker from the usually redoubtable Belgian.
The way Pogba knocked him off the ball was a sight and he never truly recovered from that.
Rating: 5/10
Eric Dier
Much better than his central midfield partner, although that’s not saying much.
Could have scored in the first-half and some of his sliding tackles were top-class.
Rating: 6/10
Heung-Min Son
Anonymous showing from the Korean, despite a bright start.
Rating: 5/10
Christian Eriksen
Tried to make things happen but it wasn’t Spurs’ day.
Excellent assist for the opener and while he did try his luck from range on a number of occasions, he didn’t bring his shooting boots to the tie.
Rating: 6/10
Dele Alli
Excellent finish, made it look easy.
Apart from the goal, didn’t much of note but did draw some fouls in dangerous areas and was a major threat each time Spurs had the ball.
Rating: 7/10
Harry Kane
Cant fault his desire, but it just didn’t happen for the Spurs frontman.
Didn’t get a sniff of the ball near the box and it’s not a surprise to see his team bow out as a result.
Rating: 5/10
Substitutes
Lucas Moura
After his bright cameo against Manchester City, there was hope that the Brazilian could sprinkle some magic, but it wasn’t to be as United kept him at bay with ease.
Rating: 6/10
Victor Wanyama
Replaced the disappointing Dembela with 12 minutes left. Hardly got to see much action.
Rating: N/A
Erik Lamela
Introduced for Son with hardly any time left, but couldn’t affect the tie in a way he would have wanted.
Rating: N/A