Manchester United’s first half performance against Watford was not acceptable for any Premier League side, let alone one trying to battle a crisis.
Donny van de Beek was thrown on at the interval almost as a last resort by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
In one afternoon, he trebled the amount of Premier League minutes he had on the pitch this season.
It did not take him long to make an impact, finding the back of the net to make it 2-1.
He was by far the best United player on the pitch in the second half and only he and David de Gea emerged from the match with any credit.
Van de Beek produced an outstanding pass for Cristiano Ronaldo later in the half and the Portuguese superstar should have made it 2-2.
He also thundered into a tackle on Ismaila Sarr later in the half, showing the kind of fight which was sorely lacking elsewhere in the side.
Van de Beek’s performance deservedly drew praise from United fans on Twitter on another hugely frustrating afternoon.
Here is how his display in the 4-1 defeat went down on social media…
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