Martial and Pogba shine, Man Utd win again

Goals: Pogba 27', Martial 49' - Sigurdsson penalty 77'

Man Utd beat Everton to leapfrog their rivals into eighth place in the Premier League. Mourinho's side have 17 points and are now five points behind the top four.

Man Utd's opening goal came from a Pogba penalty after the referee determined Idrissa Gueye had fouled Martial in the box. The French midfielder made a bizarre 26-step run-up, but his first shot was blocked by goalkeeper Pickford. The ball bounced right back to Pogba, who easily slotted it into the empty net.

In the second half, Pogba returned the favor to Martial with an assist just outside the penalty area. The in-form striker curled the ball from a distance, leaving goalkeeper Pickford helpless. This was the third consecutive Premier League match that Martial has scored for Man Utd.

The game turned dramatic in the final minutes when Pogba scored another goal, but this time for Everton. The 25-year-old lost possession and Everton counter-attacked, forcing Smalling to foul Richardlison. From the 11-meter mark, Gylfi Sigurdsson reduced the score. But that was also the last goal of the match.

Coach Mourinho dropped the in-form striker Lukaku from the starting lineup and played with the trio of Martial, Rashford and Mata. This adjustment proved effective as the Man Utd attack played freely with the ability to switch positions and attack at a faster pace than in previous matches. In particular, Martial proved that his position could not be replaced by another excellent performance.

The French striker played on his usual left wing and gave defender Seamus Coleman a nightmare. In the first half hour, Everton players seemed unable to touch Martial whenever he accelerated. Besides, Martial also had good connections with his teammates, especially his compatriot Pogba.

Pogba was given the role of No. 10 conductor when coach Mourinho freed him from defensive duties with the pair of Matic and Fred. Playing freely and close to the opponent's 16m50 box, Pogba made quality penetrations and assists. After helping Martial score early in the second half, Pogba almost scored twice with a rush to finish, but goalkeeper Pickford made an excellent save.

The England goalkeeper was the key player for Everton as they avoided a heavy defeat. But Pickford's brilliance could not compensate for Everton's poor attack. Striker Richarlison was closely marked by centre-backs Lindelof and Smalling, unable to utilise his speed when receiving the ball with his back turned. Towards the end of the match, when coach Silva decided to move Richarlison back to the left wing and bring in real strikers Cenk Tosun and Lookman, Everton had some significant chances.

Man Utd also brought in striker Lukaku in the second half. However, the Belgian striker's performance was lackluster, and that made it his ninth goalless match for the club. The form of Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez is a big problem for Man Utd at the moment, as the team cannot rely on Martial alone for stability in the near future.

Line-up

Man Utd: De Gea, Young, Lindelof, Smalling, Shaw, Fred (Lingard 90'), Matic, Pogba, Mata (Herrera 85'), Rashford (Lukaku 65'), Martial.

Everton: Pickford, Coleman, Zouma, Keane, Digne, Gueye (Tosun 78'), Gomes, Walcott (Calvert-Lewin 78'), Sigurdsson, Bernard (Lookman 62'), Richarlison.