As United made another step toward securing a top-four finish, ERIK TEN HAG was left thanking the unlikely ʜᴏᴛ sʜᴏᴛ in town.
Although no one would ever consider Scott McTominay to be a prolific midfielder, his game-winning goal against Everton brought his total for the past two weeks to FIVE.
Scott McTominay opened the scoring for Manchester United.
Anthony Martial came off the bench to add a second.
Marcus Rashford limped off with an ɪɴᴊᴜʀʏ.
The 36th-minute goal by McTominay, who spun and drilled it in, finally broke the Toffees’ resistance and kept United in the Champions League running.
This came after he scored four goals in two games for Scotland over the break, matching his total from the previous 18 months for club and country.
After dominating the Blues from the start, United deserved to win, and Anthony Martial’s decisive second goal sealed a victory that never seemed in doubt.
But it wasn’t all sunshine and roses for manager Ten Hag, as Marcus Rashford hobbled off with ten minutes remaining, raising questions about whether he would play against Sevilla on Thursday in the Europa League.
If Rashford is unable to play in the first leg of the quarterfinal, at least Martial has returned to the field from the treatment table.
It took United a long time to end a game that they should have won before halftime, so they will undoubtedly need the Frenchman’s eye for goal.
They most likely would have if Jordan Pickford, the Everton goalkeeper, had not repeatedly denied them.
He deflected one Rashford drive, made a smart tackle to stop the same player, and completed the hat ᴛʀɪᴄᴋ by stopping his half-hit attempt after initially hesitating.
Ben Godfrey returned to nick it off the Brazilian’s toe just as he was about to fire when a powerful right arm pushed a vicious Antony strike behind.
On a nightmare afternoon that ended with him being hooked at halftime, it was essentially the only time the Everton left-back won his own personal ʙᴀᴛᴛʟᴇ.
Godfrey appeared to be turning and chasing back after getting caught by yet another 50-yard ball for the entire 45 minutes he was on the field.
It’s safe to sᴀʏ that he did not learn his lesson, but Sean Dyche’s choice to substitute the more nimble Vitalii Mykolenko spared him from receiving any additional punishment.
Everton was merely fortunate that it wasn’t much worse for United at that point because they were up by a goal.
As it stands, they only had McTominay’s strike to show for it, and they had to wait until the 36th minute for it.
Rashford laid the groundwork by swaying and darting across the box in search of a gap.
When none materialized, the ball broke to Jadon Sancho on the right, who took a few touches and slipped a precise pass for McTominay through a crowded area.