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Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay's display against Barcelona a 'defining moment'
Scott McTominay’s performance in Manchester United’s 1-0 defeat to Barcelona has been hailed as a ‘defining moment’ by Owen Hargreaves.
United lost the Champions League quarter-final first-leg to Barca and failed to muster a single shot on target, with 22-year-old McTominay their best player at Old Trafford.
His energy in the middle of the park helped disrupt Barca and former United midfielder Hargreaves, as well as United legend Rio Ferdinand, heaped praise on McTominay after the game.
AS IT HAPPENED: Manchester United 0-1 Barcelona
READ MORE: Shaw OG hands Barca narrow victory over Man Utd
The Scottish international often drew criticism for displays under Jose Mourinho, but produced an accomplished performance to ‘cement his spot as a regular’ in the mind of the BT Sport pundits.
“Scott McTominay was the best player on the pitch,” Hargreaves said.
“For that young man to be the best player on the pitch when Fred cost £50m, Pogba cost £90m – it’s quite exceptional really.
“That solidified him as a Manchester United regular. That’s a defining moment for the young man against that Barcelona team.
“That’s him established and it’s a massive moment for him. He was terrific.”
Ferdinand echoed his former team-mates thoughts, believing that his display will earn him respect in the dressing room.
“I thought he was great. He grew into the game and he grew in stature,” Ferdinand explained.
“I thought his energy, his intensity – he was the catalyst for a lot of good stuff that happened. He won a lot of balls back, gave it simply to other players.
“Sometimes these are the performances that make you really grow in stature and believe you are a part of the team.
“Young lads come into the team and it takes a performance or two for them to feel comfortable and I think the PSG game and this one will do that. He’ll be respected more after that.”
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was just as effusive in his praise for McTominay, claiming that the youngster was the player to settle United down after a disappointing start saw them go 1-0 down in the 12th minute
“Scott every time he plays for us he’s improving,” Solskjaer said.
“Today on the ball too – he’s a great athlete, he can run all day long and he wins the challenges, quick on his feet – but on the ball he was composed, bought the ball down a few times and he started settling us.”
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