Juventus were victorious thanks to a match winning goal from Dybala in the first half. Let's look at each individual's performance through statistics and my opinion.
Goalkeeper
Wojciech Szczesny
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 29
Passes: 21
Successful: 16/21 (76.2%)
Goalkeeping Stats
Saves: 2
Clearances: 1
Goals conceded: 0
Rating: 7.5
Szczęsny wasn’t really challenged much throughout the game. Out of a total of 6 shots by United, only two were on target. It definitely helps to have Chiellini and Bonucci right in front. Let’s hope when he actually is challenged that he manages to get more clean sheets.
Defenders
Alex Sandro
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 81
Passes: 58
Successful: 52/58 (89.7%)
Dribbles won: 3/3 (100%)
Dispossessed: 0
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 3
Tackles: ½ (50%)
Interceptions: 2
Rating: 8
Sandro had arguably his best performance since the 2016-17 season. He’s had a dip in form recently and was even heavily linked to a move away from Juventus last summer. I’m not sure what convinced him to stay or for Juve not to sell him, but if he delivers more performances like this then he’ll continue to be an important player for Juve. He was everywhere in the field doing whatever he could for the team. Whether that meant helping push the ball forward to cross or come back on defense to recover. The way he managed to not lose the ball even once was very impressive. Hopefully this becomes his usual output and not an isolated performance.
Giorgio Chiellini
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 75
Passes: 63
Successful: 57/63 (90.4%)
Dribbles won: 6/8 (75%)
Dispossessed: 0
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 7
Blocked shots: 1
Tackles: 3/3 (100%)
Interceptions: 1
Rating: 7.5
Chiellini has been one of the most consistent center backs in world football and continues to give good defensive displays every week. Against United, he was always helping in the build up, hence the 63 attempted passes with a 90% success rate. Age seems to not have caught up to him just yet and we’ll have to see just how longer he can continue being the rock in our defense.
Leonardo Bonucci
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 88
Passes: 77
Successful: 66/77 (85.7%)
Dispossessed: 0
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 3
Blocked shots: 2
Tackles: 1/1 (100%)
Rating: 7/10
Many Bianconeri fans have been unpleased with Bonucci’s mistakes in the past few games which have led to goals. This is fair criticism but let’s not place all the blame on him. I have to give credit where it’s due and he had a phenomenal game against United. While Chiellini had the better defensive output, Bonucci was definitely more active in helping push the ball forward. Which is not surprising at all given he’s one of the best long passers in the game. Let’s hope he can continue to give solid performances like this one since we definitely need a player with his capabilities.
Joao Cancelo
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 81
Passes: 52
Successful: 45/52 (86.5%)
Dribbles won: ½ (50%)
Dispossessed: 1
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 2
On target: 1 (50%)
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 5
Tackles: 0/1 (0%)
Interceptions: 2
Rating: 7/10
So far this season Cancelo has been one of the most consistent players on the field. He should have walked away with a couple of assists but failed to complete some passes that would have been dangerous if completed. He didn’t play as good as we’ve seen him before but still had an overall good performance.
Midfielders
Blaise Matuidi
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 68
Passes: 52
Successful: 48/52 (92.3%)
Dribbles won: 1/3 (33%)
Dispossessed: 2
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 2
On target: 1 (50%)
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 1
Tackles: 1/1 (100%)
Interceptions: 2
Rating: 7.8
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I have criticized Matuidi for not doing enough in prior games knowing just how much he can do. He was one of the best players on the field and was exciting to watch. He was literally all over the field thanks to his incredible work rate and intensity. Statistics definitely do not take into account how important he was on the pitch. A strong argument can be made for him being man of the match.
Miralem Pjanic
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 97
Passes: 79
Successful: 72/79 (91.1%)
Dribbles won: ½ (50%)
Dispossessed: 1
Defensive Stats
Clearances: 1
Tackles: 1/2 (50%)
Interceptions: 1
Rating: 7.6
Pjanic has continued to be the heart of our midfield. A great passer with stellar vision. He was a silent key player in this match up. The almost flawless transition between defense to attack is in a lot of times thanks to him. Decent performance.
Rodrigo Bentancur
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 97
Passes: 86
Successful: 78/86 (90.7%)
Dispossessed: 0
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 2
On target: 0 (0%)
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Defensive Stats
Tackles: 1/1 (100%)
Interceptions: 1
Rating: 6.7
I’m really glad Allegri has been giving Bentancur a lot of starting chances as of late. He’s a really promising player and I believe he has a lot he can improve on. He didn’t do anything overly amazing this game but he was very solid in the passing aspect. Let’s hope to see major improvement from him as he gets more comfortable with the team and is allowed more freedom from Allegri.
Cuadrado
General Stats
Time: 81’
Touches: 65
Passes: 52
Successful: 48/52 (92.3%)
Dribbles won: ½ (50%)
Dispossessed: 1
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 1
On target: 0 (0%)
Defensive Stats
Interceptions: 1
Rating: 6.9/10
Cuadrado has been criticized a lot recently with Allegri giving him a lot of playing time over others. He had a very decent game and deserved a starting role. He was very valuable pushing the ball forward throughout the game and was able to create many chances for others. I prefer him a lot better in the right flank than as a right back since it’s his natural position.
Forwards
Cristiano Ronaldo
General Stats
Time: 90’
Touches: 50
Passes: 35
Successful: 32/35 (91.4%)
Dribbles won: 6/8 (75%)
Dispossessed: 2
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 3
On target: 2 (33%)
Goals: 0
Assists: 0
Defensive Stats
Tackles: 1/1 (100%)
Rating: 7/10
If it wasn’t for De Gea being United’s goalkeeper, Ronaldo would have undoubtedly found the back of the net. While he wasn’t able to score or give an assist, he continued to apply pressure on United which was very effective. One of his shots ended up hitting the post and into the feet of Dybala which put it away. CR7 continues to have a lot of influence as always.
Paulo Dybala
General Stats
Time: 78’
Touches: 69
Passes: 55
Successful: 50/55 (90.9%)
Dribbles won: ½ (50%)
Dispossessed: 1
Attacking Stats
Total shots: 3
On target: 1 (33%)
Goals: 1
Assists: 0
Rating: 8/10
At this point, no one’s mentioning his slow start to the season. A hat trick against Young Boys and a match winning goal against United in the Champions League is simply amazing. It’s an absolute joy to see his dynamic play live keeping possession and passing accurately. The season’s barely starting and I can’t wait to see just how much he accomplishes this year.