United Back on the Rise?

           With their captain out for a red card from a previous game and painful start to the season to say the least, Manchester United needed some of their new players to prove their value against Everton, and that is exactly what they did. When Angel Di Maria moved from Real Madrid to United this summer, he became the most expensive player in English football history, and he is proving that further each game he plays. With a second-string player in at right back for the Everton side, it took no time for Di Maria to expose the left side of the field in their attack. After the opening goal in this game against Everton, Di Maria has had 3 goals in 4 games with United and plenty of assists and other opportunities to go along. The pricey but productivity has showed his worth for the team, and he is looking the best out of all of United’s new signings for the season.

            On the other side of the scoring done by United this season, there is Radamel Falcao. Unlike the productive start of Di Maria, Falcao can seemingly not get started at United, and by the fourth game had still yet to score. Attempt after attempt, Falcao remained goalless and has been looking less and less valuable to the team. Not only in goals has Falcao been unproductive, but he has lacked attack and skill throughout the field during his time at United so far. Then, after a shot gone wide by Di Maria, Falcao was able to reach the ball and put it into the back of the Everton net, opening what is hoped to be a high-scoring season for him this year. With relief, Falcao was not only able to score the goal that would lead Manchester United to a victory over Everton but was also able to save another from going into his own goal, making for a fairly productive game for a striker. After the start to the season that United has had, a win like this is necessary to the confidence and success of the team. To have this win without their captain is even more of a victory, and it raises questions to the viability of Wayne Rooney as the captain of the Manchester United team, and it will be interesting to see how the team does in further games without their captain and how these results will impact his role when he returns.