Manchester United scooped a huge win in the race for next season’s Champions League by beating Tottenham 3-2 at Old Trafford.
Here are the three best players from a game which took United back into the top four…
Cristiano Ronaldo
Where else can we start?
Ronaldo has been the subject of much chatter about his fitness after his absence from the Manchester derby and some training sessions this week.
He responded in the perfect way with a hat-trick which made him the leading goalscorer in the history of football.
Ronaldo has operated under huge pressure throughout his whole career and he delivered when the chips were down once again.
WhoScored gave him a perfect 10 on a day where he had eight shots, five of which were on target and of course three were scored.
Jadon Sancho
Marcus Rashford was handed an opportunity to shine by Ralf Rangnick, who sent him a very public message ahead of the game.
He did not take it and his performance did not contrast well with Sancho, who was a constant threat and continued his recent good form.
Sancho created more chances than any other United player (4) and regularly took chances to counter attack into spaces Spurs left behind.
He is becoming a key player for Ralf Rangnick and United, having recovered incredibly well from his early season struggles.
Fred
Gary Neville said that he considered giving Fred man of the match ahead of Ronaldo, which underlines how well Fred played.
Scott McTominay and Bruno Fernandes were ruled out here, which meant the onus was on Fred to offer energy in the United engine room.
He did that, as well as setting up Ronaldo’s stunning first goal with a cute pass around the corner which drew praise from Roy Keane at half-time and should not be forgotten completely.
With Atletico Madrid ahead on Tuesday, Rangnick needs Fred to keep this level of performance up, even if Bruno and McTominay are fit to return in midweek.
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