In a resounding 2-0 victory over Everton on Saturday at Old Trafford, Manchester United boosted their Champions League prospects. Erik ten Hag’s team once again took use of home advantage after defeating Brentford just a few days prior.

The Manchester Evening News’ Samuel Luckhurst described the Red Devils’ performance against Newcastle United as “lifeless,” but they were full of energy this time around. They ended the first half with 21, the most attempts on goal of any Premier League team this season.

Despite their dominance, the home team only had a slight advantage at halftime—one goal—before Scott McTominay, who had four goals for Scotland while on the field for international service, finally broke the tie with a beautiful angle finish.

With just under 20 minutes remaining, Anthony Martial, a substitute, secured the victory by converting from close range after Marcus Rashford had taken advantage of a rare Seamus Coleman error. United had been missing chances recently, including a horrifying miss from Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

On a relatively calm day for the top-four contenders, Bruno Fernandes stood out as the game’s standout performer, recording a staggering total of six key passes from his 117 touches while “balling” in his deep-lying role, according to presenter Terry Flewers.

As a result of his skillful performance in the middle of the field, the 28-year-old midfield master earned a stellar match rating of 8.0 on Sofascore, which was only topped by Jordan Pickford, the opposing goalkeeper.

However, the former Sporting CP star wasn’t the only one who controlled the midfield for Ten Hag’s team; that man McTominay was also “superb,” according to former MEN reporter Hesham Bilal-Hafiz.

Against Everton, how did McTominay fare?

Due to his prominent performance earlier today, it appears as though the United academy graduate has seized the opportunity to shine in recent games while Casemiro, a key Brazilian player, has been out injured.

In addition to scoring a close-range goal in lavish fashion, the £60k per week player had a “very good game” overall, according to Laurie Whitwell of The Athletic, where he served as a very dynamic presence in the middle of the pitch.

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The 6 foot 4 menace did lose possession on 17 occasions, but he was still able to provide a creative spark alongside Fernandes, making three crucial passes during his 90-minute performance and setting up one significant opportunity.

However, it was McTominay’s defensive skill that really stood out, as he won 11 of his total duels on the day, including notably winning 100% of his aerial duels as a sign of the physical strength that the Lancaster-born monster can give to the side.

The 39-cap menace received a strong 7.5 match rating from Sofascore for the all-action performance, which was a just reward for a good individual and team performance.

While Ten Hag and company may face bigger challenges in the future, the former Ajax manager can draw enormous inspiration from today’s convincing victory in the midst of a busy and demanding schedule of games.