Martial Makes Amends in Moscow.

CSKA Moscow 1 Manchester United 1

United returned to the city of their famous 2008 Champions League triumph looking to obtain a first away win in their group this season. However, all they managed to come away with was a point following a below par performance.

When the draw was made for this season's Champions League group stages many fans worried about facing CSKA for no other reason than it would involve a long round trip to the Russian capital for the squad, especially considering that on their return to Manchester they would have the small matter of a local derby to look forward to a few days later.

Buoyed by a brilliant display away at Everton the squad looked to be on a high in the build up to the match against the twelve-time Russian champions who like United and the other teams in the group were all locked on 3 points prior to this match.

Louis van Gaal had a small quandary and that was whether or not to stick with the side that performed so well at Goodison Park with fit again Herrera and Rojo the standout performers or recall the players who hadn't featured including Memphis, Blind and Valencia. In the end the manager decided to freshen things up by choosing a starting XI which included: De Gea, Valencia, Smalling, Jones, Rojo, Schneiderlin, Schweinsteiger, Herrera, Lingard, Martial and Rooney.

On the bench were: Romero, Fellaini, Mata, Carrick, Blind, Memphis and Darmian.

So, a surprising start for youngster Jesse Lingard, who got the nod ahead of Juan Mata on the night and a recall for Valencia in place of Darmian. It was Valencia who scored the winner in this same fixture six years ago to the day.

Mata must have done something to irk the manager as he was pulled off against Everton at half-time and overlooked tonight, even though van Gaal stated it was due to the Spaniard needing a little rest, also the Dutch duo of Memphis and Blind had to start from the bench after being overlooked for the second straight match.

United got the tie underway on a bitterly cold night in Moscow and had an early shout for a penalty as Martial looked to have been brought down inside the area, but nothing was awarded, then in the 15th minute Martial was involved in another penalty debate as when CSKA attacked the United area the ball hit the French youngster on his raised hand and the referee had no choice but to award the home side a spot kick. Martial's name was taken by the referee for the offence.

De Gea saved Eremenko's resulting penalty, but it was Doumbia who reacted quicker than the United defence, especially Phil Jones, to poke the rebound home and put the Russians ahead. That was probably Martial's first mistake in his fledgling United career, but one that hopefully he will learn from.

Following the penalty, the play became a little scrappy with some heavy challenges going in with United taking their time to get into any sort of rhythm. On the half hour, David De Gea pulled off a fantastic one-handed save at full stretch to prevent the ball entering the top corner from an audacious attempt from Musa.

At this point, United were toothless in attack and the tactic of Martial wide left was just not paying off and his pace and skill on the ball would have been better suited through the middle. Martial did manage to deliver a great cross with the outside of his boot, but both Herrera and Rooney got in each others way trying to get on the end of it.

At half-time, United went in trailing to the penalty and if not for De Gea it could have been worse. This was a poor showing by the away side who had around 70% of the possession during the opening 45 minutes, but had absolutely nothing to show for it and would be hoping that the situation could be rectified in the second half.

Van Gaal decided that a change was needed at the start of the second half and brought on Fellaini in place of Schweinsteiger. In the opening ten minutes, it was a similar situation to the first as United had the majority of the ball, but this was the tepid display of the Emirates and not the Goodison Park showing.

There was absolutely no cohesion with the players in attack and it wasn't until the hour mark that the visitors managed an effort on goal when Rooney had a near post effort saved. Lingard then tried his luck, however, his perfectly timed run was wrongly adjudged to be offside.

The second change saw Blind enter the fray when he replaced Rojo and straight after the change United pulled level through Martial. The French striker made amends for giving away the penalty by producing a stunning header inside the penalty area following an excellent cross from Valencia.

Martial showed great character to pull himself up after the error of the first half and it is credit to him that he didn't buckle like many young players would have. The way he judged the flight of the ball to run unmarked into the box was a delight to watch.

Not for the first time this season United looked a different side from the first half and began to push forward for the winner as Memphis became the last substitution when he came on for the hard-working Lingard to see out the last ten minutes of the match.

Fellaini had a late chance to grab all three points following good work from Memphis whose deep inswinging cross was flicked back into the danger area by Martial, unfortunately Fellaini couldn't add the finishing touch that was desperately needed. Fellaini was then needlessly cautioned for giving away a free-kick after a dithering Jones failed to support the Belgian, poor play by Jones who dropped his colleague in trouble.

The game ended in a 1-1 draw which overall United will have to be content with after a terrible first half performance with once again many players under performing none more so than the captain Wayne Rooney, who not for the first time this season has done nothing to prove his doubters wrong. He display seemed lethargic and his passing was nowhere near good enough at this level.

How long will it be before van Gaal bites the bullet and leaves his skipper out. In the second half, Martial once again proved that he deserves the chance to play in the central strikers role.

At the back Jones produced his usual unconvincing display and he doesn't exactly fill his colleagues with confidence and the best fit would be either Blind or Rojo playing alongside Smalling with the other filling in at left back.

With a possible banana skin of a match out of the way United can now head back to England and concentrate fully on the 170th derby against City on Sunday, a match that will not only decide which team will have the bragging rights around the city but will also determine which side gains the upper hand in the league.

Until then.

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

United keep the Wolf from the door.

Manchester United 2 Wolfsburg 1

After returning to the summit of the Premier League for the first time since 2013 United's attention turned once again to the Champions League and a must win home tie against German outfit Wolfsburg.

The last and only time the two sides met was in the same competition back in 2009 when United came out on top both home and away with Michael Owen scoring a hat-trick in the match in Germany.

Louis van Gaal had a few injury concerns ahead of the clash at Old Trafford, including long-term casualty Luke Shaw, who had the terrible double leg break in the first group stage defeat by PSV. Also missing were Rojo, Carrick and Herrera.

Knowing that experience would be key against the Germans the manager chose his own German, Schweinsteiger, to bring the much- needed assurance in the midfield especially with Carrick absent and a be a helping hand to the players who are only just beginning their European journeys.

United's starting eleven consisted of De Gea; Valencia, Smalling, Blind, Darmian; Schneiderlin, Schweinsteiger; Mata, Rooney, Memphis and Martial.

Subs: Romero, Jones, McNair, Pereira, Young, Fellaini and Wilson.

The home side got the game underway, but disaster struck as early as the 4th minute as Caligiuri opened the scoring for the visitors as United's defence were caught cold when Valencia played the striker onside by not moving up with the other defenders. A really bad mistake by Valencia who had been a doubt before the match.

United's first real opportunity came from Mata who had a shot deflected for a corner quickly followed by in form Martial, whose curled effort ended just wide of the far post.

Wolfsburg, to be honest, started the brightest of the two sides and obviously came with a game plan to try and nullify United's attacking threat by defending as one and attack on the counter. The Red Devil's would need all of Mata's guile, Smalling's defensive savvy and Schweinsteiger's mastery in midfield to overcome the Germans.

Not for the first time this season United had started the first half poorly, but after a shaky twenty minutes they at last started to put pressure on the oppositions' defence and if not for some woeful finishing would have levelled. Especially from Rooney, who skied his effort into row Z after some brilliant work from Martial in the box to gift the captain the chance.

Memphis was next to miss a chance after he was played in by a wonderful ball from Mata but the young Dutchman's header was easily collected by the keeper. It was turning into one of those nights you dreaded at that Theatre of Dreams.

Then just after the half hour mark United got the breakthrough their play had deserved when they were awarded a penalty for a clear handball decision after a Mata cross. The huge responsibility was taken by Mata himself, who calmly placed the spot kick into the net to level the match at 1-1.

The goal seemed to lift not only the fans, but also the players as almost immediately Memphis had two chances to put the home side ahead but failed on both occasions.

There were two bookings in quick succession for Schneiderlin and Schweinsteiger for tackles that the referee deemed to dangerous, however the challenges didn't seem that bad at all and in fact Schweinsteiger reacted angrily towards the German opposition player for his caution. Both players would have to tread carefully for the remainder of the game.

Half time and it was all square at 1-1 and van Gaal's side must have been ruing the missed chances that had fallen their way the main culprit being Rooney and his miss when it looked odds-on he would score. The players could take solace in the fact that their second-half performances this season have produced more productivity, which is certainly what was needed in this match as Wolfsburg still posed a threat when attacking.

United started the second half attacking the Stretford End with the hope of making the chances count and to get their noses in front as soon as possible. Young had replaced Valencia at right back strangely leaving Darmian at left back.  However, it was Darmian, who made a telling clearance from inside the box from an early Wolfsburg attack.

Then it was the moment when Chris Smalling became the unlikely hero as he netted from close range in the 53rd minute after a masterful back heel into the area by Mata. If anyone deserves a goal this season it is Smalling. The defender has impressed so far this term at the back and his overall game has improved from last season.

David De Gea produced his usual match saving save, this time beating away an effort from goal scorer Caligiuri.

On the hour mark, Memphis made way for youngster Pereira having just been cautioned for absolutely nothing. Another case of the Wolfsburg players overreacting to con the referee into booking a player. Unfortunately, Memphis had been mostly wasteful with his possession, but the experience should be helpful for him and the side in the future.

There was a scare for the United faithful as goal hero Smalling landed awkwardly on his right ankle, thankfully it turned out not to be as serious as it first appeared.

The visitors still threatened when on the attack and came close on a couple of nerve-racking occasions for the home supporters.

Van Gaal made his last change of the game when he replaced Schweinsteiger with Phil Jones and immediately the defender was called on to clear the danger from a Wolfsburg attack. Schweinsteiger didn't have the impact he would have hoped for but he gave his all for the cause. The change meant that Blind moved into midfield with Jones rekindling his partnership with Smalling.

Young made his way into the referee's book for time wasting at a throw-in and with the way the official brandished the card in the match the players had to be more careful. To prove the point Schneiderlin walked on eggshells for the last ten minutes of the match when he gave away a couple of free-kicks in succession and was certainly playing a dangerous game having already been booked in the first half.

United had a late free-kick in a dangerous area to kill the game off, but Pereira couldn't replicate his goal heroics against Ipswich this time round.

It finished 2-1 to a United side who were grateful for Smalling being at the right place at the right time to ensure the Red Devils achieved their first win of the season in the group stages of the Champions League.

Some of the performances need mentioning for differing reasons Mata performed to his usual high standard and he provided the outrageous back-heeled assist for the winner along with his penalty, unfortunately his influence was less felt as the second half progressed, Martial continued to impress as he ran the front line admirably, but it is Smalling who deserves the plaudits and the man of the match award for his all round marshalling of the defence and his deserved winning goal.

However, the one player who flattered to deceive was once again Rooney. On too many occasions the play broke down when he was in possession and as each week passes it's becoming the same old story as his performances are just not good enough for the quality that he possesses and it is a quandary that the manager has to face up to as quite clearly he is not getting the best out of his captain as was summed up with the clear cut chance he ballooned in the first half one that the Rooney of old would have buried with conviction.

On a positive note, the side registered their first three points in the group and will hopefully build on that as they face a tricky double-header against CSKA Moscow.

In reality for all of the Germans pressure on United's defence, David De Gea only had one save to make of real importance add that to a couple of last-gasp clearances from the defence and United dealt with the threat from the visitors who quite rightly were left chasing the game and in fairness United had ample opportunities to kill the game off.

Onwards and upwards.

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

There's a new Martial in town.

He has endured comparisons galore by being dubbed the new Henry, Anelka and Kluivert but there is one thing for certain Anthony Martial has the potential to surpass all of their achievements and become a great among the greats at Old Trafford.

When the 19-year-old arrived at United at the end of the transfer window many eyebrows were raised, not only at United but around the football world, at the size of the fee paid for such a young talent.

The French teenager was signed from Monaco by Louis van Gaal for a fee that will rise to around £50m depending on how successful his career at United turns out to be. There was obviously something that the manager saw in him that many hadn't to make him the most expensive teenager in world football.

The United fans spent the summer trying to second guess who was the one striker that van Gaal had mentioned would be joining the Red Devils, Was it to be Muller, Benzema, Griezmann, Cavani or even Bale? But he surprised everyone by turning his attention to a youngster, who, although well known in France was relatively unknown in England.

However, from the moment that Martial made his debut for United as a scoring substitute in the 3-1 victory over arch rivals Liverpool all that changed and changed dramatically.

The manager had warned the faithful not to get too carried away with the striker, but that was not easy as he then went on to score three more goals, including a double away at Southampton and one in the League Cup against Ipswich Town all scored with that certain quality only a class striker has. His tally so far has equalled Falcao's total for all of last season.

His latest star turn came in the Premiership at Old Trafford in which, although he failed to score against Sunderland he put on a display of such maturity, strength and confidence it was as if he had led the line at United for years instead of only weeks.

The skill he showed in the assist for the Rooney goal was impressive and he also used his power and awareness to set up Memphis who really should have done better. At no time in the match did he shirk his responsibilities and on many occasions during the game he was surrounded by three or four defenders, which shows that opposition players have already woken up to his threat as a forward.

The impressive striker must be full of confidence after all the plaudits coming his way and it is so easy for a young talent to have their head turned by all the attention, especially at a club the size of United, however, there is one important factor in keeping his feet firmly on the ground and that is he is married and has a baby daughter.

Having such a young family means that he won't be spotted coming out of clubs late at night, but will most likely be snapped pushing a pram around shopping centers. Fergie would have loved him.

Along with the likes of Memphis, Shaw, Lingard, Pereira and Wilson, Martial joins a young group of players who have brought the belief back to the team that the future at the club is bright and they will provide the springboard for future success at United.

With all the attributes that Martial possesses he has the chance to write his name into the United folklore much the same as another deadly assassin did, a certain Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, now there's a comparison.

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

Stay Strong Shaw.

It was that sick feeling that you get in your stomach when you know that something serious has happened to a player as he goes down, visibly in agony.

That was the feeling I had as soon as I witnessed the challenge from PSV defender Hector Moreno on United's Luke Shaw in the 15th minute of the Champions League clash at the Philips Stadion on Tuesday evening.

As soon as Shaw hit the ground everyone knew it was serious, but of course nobody knew how serious. However, judging from the expressions on the faces of the players surrounding their young teammate you understood that it was bad. The depressing image of him being stretchered off the pitch with an oxygen mask attached to his face didn't bode well as to his state.

After being taken to hospital everyone's worst fears were confirmed that Shaw had suffered a double fracture to his right leg and immediately underwent surgery in a bid to reset his bones.

There had been discussions and debates even before the match ended as to whether or not it was a fair challenge by Moreno. I personally believe it was a free-kick and, therefore, a penalty and warranted the minimum of a yellow card, but maybe I'm a little biased. All that is secondary now and the main thoughts have to be with Luke and his inevitably long road to recovery.

The England international has many positives to fall back on the main one being his age at only 20 years old, he has time on his side and being a sportsman his level of fitness will only aid his situation, but more importantly, he is at the right club where he will receive nothing but the best treatment to aid him in his recovery as United have the perfect facilities for recovering players at their training HQ at Carrington.

Shaw also has the benefit of modern medicine and the advances in treating such injuries have been vastly improved over recent years to such an extent that he will expect to recover completely from the injury unlike some players in the past whose career would have been over for something less serious.

The biggest problem will be the psychological aspects of the recovery as he will be training mainly alone as faces being out of action for around nine months according to specialists. He will have to remain focused during his rehabilitation period, but he only has to talk to his colleague Antonio Valencia who also suffered a serious leg injury.

Valencia broke his ankle while playing for United in the Champions League against Rangers back in 2010. Sure, his injury wasn't as serious as Shaw's but he did have to go through exactly what his teammate will face and I'm sure he will advise him on how to remain focused.

The outpouring of sympathy from all fans and players around the world, not just United, must have uplifted his spirits and I'm sure that it will continue until the day that we see him back on the pitch in his No.23 shirt stronger and fitter than ever. In a strange quirk of fate United's next match will be against Shaw's former club Southampton at St. Mary's stadium where I'm sure both sets of fans will spare a thought for the popular full-back.

I leave the last words to him "Thank you, everyone, for your messages, words can't describe how gutted I am, my road to recovery starts now, I will come back stronger."

Be Lucky Luke.

Miles Dunton.

Shaw Injury Blow To United.

PSV 2 Manchester United 1

Sometimes events on the pitch far outweigh the result and this was true about United's opening defeat in Holland as defender Luke Shaw suffered a double fracture of his right leg which will rule him out for six months if not longer.

After a season of watching from a distance it was time for United to take their place among the European elite once again as they played their opening match in this season's group stage of the Champions League against PSV of Holland.

The match saw the quick return of Memphis to his old stomping ground after signing for United in June.  He left the club a hero and received a warm welcome from the home fans in recognition of the service he gave to the Dutch outfit over eight years.

Louis van Gaal was also returning to his native homeland, but his record at the Philips Stadion is not a glowing one as a manager as out of ten matches in charge with AZ,  Ajax and Barcelona he has only enjoyed two wins.

After the victory over Liverpool the manager had a tough decision to make and that was whether he should start with the side that began against Liverpool or go with the eleven that finished the match because the first half was not a patch on the second.

Ashley Young brought a much-needed injection of urgency to the second half at Old Trafford last Saturday and, of course, there was a scoring debut for new teenage striker Anthony Martial.

In the end, the manager decided that his starting XI would consist of: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Blind, Shaw, Schweinsteiger, Herrera, Young, Mata, Depay and Martial.
Subs: Romero, Rojo, Carrick, Valencia, Fellaini, Schneiderlin and McNair.

A very attack-minded side with Martial given his first start as a United player after van Gaal admitted that Fellaini was too ill to start the match and with no Rooney he was left with little choice. Chris Smalling was given the captain's armband as Carrick started from the bench.

Man United got the match underway wearing their new black third strip for the first time and the first quarter of an hour was all United as they used the wings to great effect and dominated possession and would have been hoping to turn it into goals until a horrendous tackle on Luke Shaw by defender Hector Moreno changed everything.

As Shaw entered the penalty area after a surging run he was scythed down by Moreno and went to ground in obvious agony as clearly something serious had happened. After receiving medical assistance, Shaw was stretchered off clearly in pain with an oxygen mask easing his obvious discomfort.

The amazing thing was that Moreno wasn't even cautioned for his awful challenge and quite why the referee didn't even deem it dangerous in any way is beyond belief.

On a side note of the sad turn of events, as Shaw was stretchered off to warm applause throughout the stadium Marcos Rojo entered the action as he replaced the England international for his first start of the season.

The United players were visibly upset by the injury to their teammate, but they had to find a way to clear their minds and get on with the job in hand.

United stepped up the pressure five minutes before half-time and it paid off as Memphis collected a great pass in the 41st minute from Blind, who had moved to the left back position, and the former PSV hero danced into the penalty area then placed a low left-footed shot past the keeper to give the visitors a deserved lead.

The Dutchman almost followed that up with his second before captain Smalling found himself in the unlikely position of a striker, however, his effort was blocked for a corner. A case of captain literally leading from the front.

With so much added time to be played due to the injury to Shaw PSV rubbed salt into United's wounds by equalising from a corner and it was the player who shouldn't even have been on the pitch, Moreno, who had his header deflected into the net by Blind.

Even with the two late goals the first half was all about the terrible injury to Luke Shaw and it was made worse by the fact that the offender Moreno celebrated his goal with such aplomb. Shaw had started the season extremely well after so many injuries last season, so this was a real blow to the youngster.

The second half got underway with the home side on the offensive and their attacking play caught United on the back foot after 57 minutes when a high cross into the box eluded Rojo and found Narsingh at the far post to head home to put PSV in the lead.

Interestingly, it was Blind who had struggled to get back to track the scorer in the position where Shaw would have been. Blind has been solid at the back alongside Smalling but as a full-back his pace is suspect to say the least which begs the question why wasn't Rojo used as a direct replacement for Shaw to keep the partnership of Smalling and Blind together.

Moreno was at it again, this time on Young, who was brought down by another dangerous tackle, but this time he was eventually booked.

Mata had a great chance to equalise or even square the ball across the box to an unmarked Memphis, but his initial control let him down and the big chance was wasted.

During the second half there was a lot of huffing and puffing by United but without the ability to blow the home defence down as they tried to play their way through the middle of a compact back four and when they did go wide the deliveries from the wings were poor.

Van Gaal tried to freshen the side up when he replaced Herrera with Fellaini for the last twenty minutes and shortly after the change Martial almost recreated the Mark Hughes goal from the '91 Cup Winners Cup final but the teenager shot weakly wide.

Valencia replaced Young in the last throws of a match that was increasingly slipping away from United with the home supporters raising the roof as the away side struggled to create any chances of note with Fellaini guilty of slow reactions inside the box probably due to his illness.

There was a moment that summed up United's night when in injury time they won a free-kick on the edge of the box for a handball and with the penalty area full of players ready to attack the expected delivery they decided to play it short and the chance had gone.

Full time and United had been beaten 2-1 by a determined and well-organised PSV side. As for United they can take solace in the fact that things can only get better.

The injury to Shaw left a black cloud over the match and the performance of the referee should also be questioned as he let so many bad challenges by the home team go without any cautions, but the Red Devils only had themselves to blame as once they had taken the lead they should have made sure of the result with enough chances to put the game out of the reach of the hosts, but they allowed the Dutch side to bully them into submission and were left wanting in the end.

There is still no need to panic just yet as there is a long way to go in the group and if United can win their first home game against Wolfsburg then they will be firmly back on track.

But it was a night when everybody's thoughts in the football world turned to Luke Shaw and with the well-wishing came the hope that he will make a full and speedy recovery as did Antonio Valencia when he suffered a bad break to his ankle, also in the Champions League.

I will leave the last words to Shaw himself: "Thank you, everyone, for your messages, words can't describe how gutted I am, my road to recovery starts now, I will come back stronger."

Thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

'Martial Law' Imposed at Old Trafford.

Manchester United 3 Liverpool 1

It is every young, and old, United fan's dream to score at the Stretford End on your debut against the clubs bitterest rivals Liverpool, well it became a reality for teenage sensation Anthony Martial as his first goal for his new team put the result beyond the reach of Liverpool and immediately gave him hero status among the Old Trafford faithful.

At the end of the latest round of internationals, it was a much-welcomed return to the Premier League and what a return as the two bitterest rivals in English football locked horns again at Old Trafford.

All the international talk prior to the match was the achievement of United's captain Wayne Rooney as he surpassed Sir Bobby Charlton's England scoring record by netting his 50th goal from the penalty spot against Switzerland and now has his sights set on the scoring record at club level, however he will have to wait a little longer as he was ruled out of this clash with a hamstring problem.

On the eve of the game United were boosted by the news that keeper David De Gea had put pen to paper and signed a new four-year contract with the option of an extension. There was, however, no news about whether or not a clause had been added that Ed Woodward could tell Real Madrid where to go if they returned for their main transfer target. At least if the Spaniards do come calling again in the future they will have to pay for the privilege of taking our number one.

Louis van Gaal had a big decision to make with the absence of his captain Rooney in who would he choose to lead the line up front, would it be Fellaini, or the newest arrival at Old Trafford French starlet Anthony Martial?

In the end, the manager chose this as his starting XI: De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Blind, Shaw, Carrick, Schweinsteiger, Mata, Herrera, Memphis and Fellaini.

On the bench were: Romero, McNair, Rojo, Schneiderlin, Valencia, Young and Martial.

An interesting selection with the experienced duo of Carrick and Schweinsteiger starting in the midfield together, with Fellaini chosen to lead the attack which meant that new signing Martial would start his United career on the bench.

The United defence would have their hands full with Rodgers choosing a double strike force of Benteke and Ings to test Blind and Smalling.

The choice of Michael Oliver as match referee didn't exactly fill the Old Trafford faithful with confidence as his record in United's matches is poor to say the least, who can forget the red card he issued to Di Maria last season for the player touching him but Joe Hart got away with a headbutt against the same official.

United started the match on the front foot and looked up for the challenge from the off with the 'old timers' Carrick and Schweinsteiger controlling the middle of the park. A huge roar greeted De Gea first touch of the ball followed by a chorus of his name echoing around the ground.

A mistake by the Liverpool keeper Mignolet led to the first real chance for Fellaini but his attempted lob over the retreating keeper was not on target.

The away keeper was kept busy during the first ten minutes as Memphis tried his luck on a couple of occasions. The Dutch winger showed great pace down the left and gave the defence the jitters so much so that they resorted to fouling him.

On the right-hand side, it was player of last month, Darmian who was stretching his legs to good effect as he played a wonderful ball into the feet of Fellaini but the Belgium looked at bit rusty as he failed to react quickly enough to get a shot away. This season the Italian full back is showing exactly why he was the right buy over Liverpool's Clyne.

After the first 30 minutes, it had been all United with the visitors not being able to trouble David De Gea in goal or for that matter the defence as all the play was at the other end. United did have a let off when Benteke was ruled offside when one on one with De Gea.

The match lost its way towards the end of the half as United seemed to run out of ideas as to how to break through the visitors defence with a lot of nice passing from the likes of Herrera and Mata with no end result.

Not a thrilling half by any means, but one that was governed by United's superior midfield and with chances that they should have done better with especially Fellaini who showed poor control in the box. Liverpool looked decidedly disjointed especially in the midfield as they let the home side dictate the pace and were probably happy to go in at half-time all square. One thing was for sure Louis van Gaal didn't appear at all happy.

The United manager decided to make a change at the beginning of the second half by bringing Ashley Young into play in place of Memphis Depay. It was Young who provided many of Fellaini's goals last season with his deliveries on a plate for the Belgian.

What a substitution it was as straight from the off Young created havoc in the Liverpool defence and was brought down on the edge of the box and from the resulting free-kick Mata played the ball to a waiting Daley Blind who smacked a brilliant shot into the top corner from the edge of the area. 1-0 to United and full credit to Young, who looked up for the challenge.

A great start to the half for the home side and they seemed invigorated by the goal and pressed hard for the second.

After ten minutes, David De Gea was clearly bored as he tried to help the visitors out with some erratic passing, but redeemed himself with a fingertip save from Ings. David is most certainly back.

Fellaini finally began to put himself about more and was brought down for a free-kick in a great position for United which Young flashed just over the bar.

Once again Matteo was the star on the right as he continued to press forward and seemed capable of creating chances with every foray forward.

There was a heart in mouth moment for the home fans as Blind proved his worth at the other end with a heroic defensive clearance off the line to save United's skin.

The 66th minute should be remembered as it was the moment French teenage sensation Anthony Martial made his United debut as he replaced Mata. In doing so, he became the first Man Utd player to make his debut v Liverpool at Old Trafford since John Thompson way back in 1936.

Then in the 69th minute Herrera was scythed down inside the box and the referee rightly pointed to the spot and it was Herrera himself, who got up, dusted himself down and dispatched the penalty firmly into the net. A goal created and finished by the impressive Spaniard who could have made a claim to become the new spot kick king.

Carrick was replaced by Schneiderlin which meant that Chris Smalling took over the captain's duties for the final twenty minutes of the match.

On a slightly negative note full-back, Darmian, blotted another impressive game with yet another yellow card, something that he has to keep an eye on as it is becoming a regular event.

There was still time left in the game for David De Gea to remind the football world why he is regarded by van Gaal as one of the best keepers around as he pulled off a wonderful save at full stretch to prevent an effort from Ibe. However, he could do nothing about the goal from Benteke in the last five minutes as the striker pulled one back with a bicycle kick reminiscent of Rooney's brilliant strike against Man City back in 2011.

Then it was the turn of Martial to take centre stage at the Theatre of Dreams with a debut goal of supreme class in the 86th minute as he collected the ball outside the box and went on a confident run, which ended when he slid the ball meticulously past Mignolet to make it a magnificent start to his Old Trafford career.

The goal earned his new side a 3-1 victory along with the three points, but more importantly a deserved victory over a very disappointing Liverpool who were tepid to say the least in their approach to the game.

The match certainly changed in momentum with the introduction of Young at the beginning of the second half as his non-stop display down the left gave United the impetus to grab the game by the scruff of the neck and turn their possession into goals, earning him a good shout for man of the match ahead of Herrera and Darmian, however Daley Blind deserved the nod above them all for his all round defensive performance and of course the opening goal.

The sweet win moves United up into second place level on points with Arsenal but five points behind local rivals City who had to rely on a last gasp winner away at Crystal Palace.

Wayne Rooney and Michael Carrick had informed the manager that the dressing room atmosphere had been flat prior to this match so to be a fly on the wall after this result would have been one to savour as the players surely would have been in buoyant mood after this result.

Let's hope that the positive mood is taken into the next challenge as United return to the group stages of the Champions League where they will face a tricky match away at PSV in Holland and a game that will see the return of Memphis to try and get one over his previous club.

Until next time thanks for reading.

Miles Dunton.

Man United's Summer Spending Spree.

Manchester United's summer transfer dealings.

United didn't end up signing Uncle Tom Cobley but if the media had had anything to do with it, they would have along with all of his family.

It was a summer that started so hot for the reds with the transfer window kicking off with a flurry of scorching hot new arrivals at Old Trafford followed by a midsummer of lukewarm speculation and ending with a little sizzle.

In total Louis van Gaal and Ed Woodward signed six new players that they hope will take the team forward and to balance the books released a number of other players either on loan or moved on to pastures new.

The first in the door at Old Trafford was the exciting young Dutch player Memphis Depay. So hot was he that even Louis van Gaal admitted that he approved the transfer of the PSV winger before the transfer window opened because of strong interest from sides like PSG.

Once the sale of the hugely ineffective Angel Di Maria to PSG had been finalised Memphis took over the iconic number 7 shirt worn with pride by such legends as Best, Robson, Cantona, Beckham and erm Owen! If the flying Dutchman reproduces the form he had shown at PSV then the United fans are in for something special.

Next to arrive was a player not widely known in England, but Italian right-back Matteo Darmian was certainly popular in Italy having played for Torino in 146 appearances and represented his home country at the last World Cup in Brazil.

A strong full-back with the ability to play across the back line and renowned for his attacking qualities, his signing was somewhat out of the blue, however if his performances at the start of the season are anything to go by then this could end up being van Gaal's best piece of business.

Darmian's arrival meant that fans' favourite Rafael was surplus to requirements and was sold to French outfit Lyon. Rafael will be missed as he was a player who was loved by the faithful for his no-nonsense displays and his scuffles with Liverpool.

This was followed by a double shot in the arm for United as both Morgan Schneiderlin and the German play maker Bastian Schweinsteiger joined United on the same day to boost the midfield.

Schneiderlin was bought from Southampton where he had been a loyal servant to the Saints since 2008 helping them return to the Premier League from league 1 via the championship.

A midfielder who goes about his job efficiently and will provide the much-needed bite to the middle of the park that has been lacking. Schneiderlin even managed to score a goal on his debut for United on the tour of the USA.

Bastian Schweinsteiger arrived at United from Bayern Munich to renew his partnership with van Gaal from their time together at the Bavarian club. This had to be the highest-profile signing of the summer for the Red Devils and one that had the fans licking their lips in anticipation of what the World Cup and Champions League winner would bring to the club.

Even though he is in his early thirties, his experience will be invaluable and together with Michael Carrick they have already started the season by interchanging with each other to ensure that the midfield has at least one of them to count on.

Probably not yet fully match fit Schweinsteiger will only improve as the season goes on. Something else that the German will undoubtedly bring to the team is a level head for when the youngsters are losing theirs similar to a certain Cantona back in the nineties.

United fans had to wait a further two weeks until news of yet a new arrival, but in that time every player who could kick, head and catch a ball were inevitably linked to the team these included such names as Lloris, Kane, Zlatan, Bale, Ronaldo, Hummels, Gaitan, Pedro, Otamendi, Cavani, Pele, Best, Law and Charlton ..you get the idea. But it was a goalkeeper who would be the next to sign on the dotted line.

With speculation building about the departure of David De Gea to Real Madrid and the fallout between Victor Valdes and the manager it wasn't really a surprise to see Sergio Romero given his chance at becoming United's new number one as he was another player to have worked with van Gaal during their time at AZ in Holland.

The Argentinian keeper came from Sampdoria with an impressive international CV after being the first choice goalkeeper for his national squad at the 2014 World Cup, where Argentina reached the final after Romero's heroics in the semi's only to lose out to Germany.

As van Gaal wasn't willing to choose De Gea, because his head wasn't on straight with all the gossip, Romero seized his chance with literally both hands and has started all of United's fixtures this season, keeping four clean sheets along the way. The only slip up so far was against Swansea where he was responsible for allowing a shot at his near post to creep inside.

With the window now closed it turns out that with the collapse of De Gea's deal to Madrid and Valdes not being able to find a new club the team now has a trio of world class keepers who will all be vying to be the first choice between the sticks.

One keeper who will not be around is Anders Lindegaard who has joined West Bromwich Albion on a free transfer. Jonny Evans also joined the United exodus to WBA following in the footsteps of Darren Fletcher who moved there last January.

The transfer rumours continued right up until the final day with news circling that at least three more big-name players would be added to the squad, but it turned out to be only one and that was another surprise in the form of 19-year-old French striker from Monaco Anthony Martial, who at £36m has become the most expensive teenager in football.

The French starlet has made 70 appearances for AS Monaco since 2013 and has scored 15 goals. The forward has represented his country from Under-16 level right through to Under-21's and was called up to the French senior squad for the first time in August by Didier Deschamps, who is obviously impressed with the youngster.

United wasted no time in announcing that Martial would take over the number 9 shirt that was vacated by the departure of Radamel Falcao who ended his loan spell at United and ended up moving south to Chelsea.

There were other forwards who left Old Trafford, including Javier Hernandez, who signed for Bayer Leverkusen, Nani joined Turkish outfit Fenerbahce but it was the sale of Robin van Persie that perplexed some fans. The Dutch striker was offloaded apparently after falling out with his compatriot van Gaal for a fee that was far too cheap for a player of his qualities.

This has left United light on forwards and with the side competing on four fronts this season it will become an issue if injuries are sustained to Rooney, Martial or James Wilson. Van Gaal has gone on record saying that he will utilise Fellaini in attack as a number 9 or 10, however, that is not the answer and one more signing of a striker would have eased the worry. The same could be said about the defence where an experienced center back was sorely needed even with the imminent return of Marcos Rojo.

The exit door also saw loan deals for two promising first team youngsters Adnan Januzaj and Tyler Blackett. Januzaj has a great chance to develop at Borussia Dortmund and a year at Celtic will do Blackett the world of good.

There you have it, another end to an interesting transfer window with some surprise buys and United having been linked to literally hundreds of players. For those of you who enjoy the gossip, rumours and speculation don't worry It will all happen again next January, but for now it's time to settle down and enjoy the football.

Thanks as always for reading.

Miles Dunton.

Man United back where they belong.

The 2015/16 UEFA Champions League draw.

At last Manchester United were back where they belong in the draw for the group stages of the UEFA Champions League after an absence that in reality was only one season but which seemed like an eternity.

As soon as United Captain Rooney scored his first of three goals last night in Belgium everyone's thoughts were turning to the group stage draw and choosing who they would prefer to play and probably more importantly the sides they didn't want to come up against until the knockout stages.

Since United last played in the competition many changes have taken place at the club from management, Moyes was replaced by Giggs who in turn made way for Louis van Gaal, to the players, with Carrick, Rooney and Smalling being the only players that started in last night's qualifier against Club Brugge who were also in the starting XI in the second leg defeat by Bayern Munich at the quarter-final stage in 2013/14. Interestingly Hernandez was also on the bench that night in Germany.

However, there has remained one constant, a status quo that can never be altered and that is the fans, fans that had to endure ridicule from rivals, which hurt, but never knocked them down as the faithful knew that it was only a matter of time before United took their place at the table reserved for Europe's elite.

The excitement of the draw had returned along with the dread of whose name would be picked alongside United. People always say that there is no easy draw which could be correct, but this year there were some really difficult but tasty possibilities. For example, United could have shared a group with one of these giants Barcelona, Bayern Munich, PSG or Juventus.

In the end they managed to avoid the so-called big teams and were pitted against PSV Eindhoven, CSKA Moscow and Wolfsburg. No disrespect to our opponents, but even United legend Peter Schmeichel, who was hosting the draw, found it difficult to hide his pleasure of the outcome.

Once the draw had been made and the dust had settled it turned out to be quite favourable for the Red Devils and the fans alike who would travel to places such as Moscow, the city of United's 2008 final victory over Chelsea, Eindhoven, a return home for our newest star Memphis, and Schweinsteiger's home country Germany to play Wolfsburg.

The hardest tie will probably be against German outfit Wolfsburg but the long trip to the Russian capital is always a draining one and PSV are well known to United's Dutch backroom staff and Memphis will have some pointers.

United will open the group away at PSV 15 Sept then Wolfsburg (h) 30 Sept, Moscow (a) 21 Oct, Moscow (h) 3 Nov, PSV (h) 25 Nov and lastly Wolfsburg (a) 8 Dec.

As Sir Alex Ferguson always said the target is to get to ten points and as long as United win their home games, then I can foresee no problem in them progressing to the knockout stages and if they can add a striker to strengthen the forward line then who knows how far we can go.

One thing is for sure it is great to be back involved with the pinnacle of club football.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the European adventure.

Miles Dunton.