Man of the match: Hargreaves.
quelle: independent.co.uk
Owen Hargreaves – 8: Was absolutely everywhere on the pitch. Stamped his authority against Gerrard and Mascherano, making sure United were never uncomfortable in the middle.
quelle: goal.com
Owen Hargreaves used all his experience in midfield to win the ball and use it sensibly
quelle: thesun.co.uk
Rio Ferdinand was named man of the match for his subduing of Fernando Torres, while Hargreaves went on to give a decent display of snuffing out danger. At Juventus and Real Madrid, Capello often deployed two holding players and his desire for a solid platform could make Hargreaves one of the first names on the England teamsheet.
Steve McClaren’s last big mistake as head coach was not starting Hargreaves against Croatia at Wembley. He compounded the error by not bringing him off the bench as soon as England clawed back to 2-2. Some of his own players were flabbergasted and, if yesterday’s positional discipline is anything to go by, Hargreaves will quickly leap ahead of Gareth Barry as England’s midfield screen.
His first few months at Old Trafford were interrupted by injury, but Hargreaves is growing into the role at United. A fee of £20 million was a lot to pay for a destructive player, but he can take a decent free kick when Wayne Rooney or Cristiano Ronaldo allow him. Best of all, he is a diligent self-improver, which will make him a valuable long-term asset to United just so long as no one tries to compare him to the incomparable Roy Keane
quelle: timesonline.co.uk
