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Rio Ferdinand says Manchester United defender did ‘quite well’ against Southampton alongside Amad Diallo

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Manchester United winger Amad Diallo was the star of the show on Thursday night as he helped the Red Devils run out 3-1 winners over Southampton.

Manchester United were on course to lose in their Premier League encounter at Old Trafford, only for Amad Diallo to score a late hat-trick.

The Red Devils fell behind to Manuel Ugarte’s own goal in the 43rd minute, the ball coming off the midfielder following a Tyler Dibling flick.

However, Man United equalised in the 82nd minute of the game when Amad slotted in at the near post after his first shot came off a defender.

Amad then got his second – a superb first-time finish from an Eriksen flick – in the 90th minute and then sealed his hat-trick in the fourth minute of injury time.

Rio Ferdinand, speaking after the game, said Amad was “the only one” who stood out – but he named another Man United player he felt did well.

Manchester United FC v Southampton FC - Premier League
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images

READ MORE: Rio Ferdinand names where Man United’s Bruno Fernandes is definitely better than Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard

Rio Ferdinand praises Manchester United’s Matthijs de Ligt for how he did against Southampton

Ferdinand took to YouTube after the match to sing Amad’s praises, but added that he felt Matthijs de Ligt “played quite well as well” at times.

“We showed character and we won the game with three moments of brilliance from Amad, who’s the absolute star,” said Ferdinand.

“(He’s) the only one to really come out this game with any real, I think, who’s done himself any favours.

“De Ligt, actually, I thought played quite well as well – at times – but Amad’s the only one.”

How De Ligt fared against Southampton

De Ligt returned to the centre of defence for the fixture against Southampton and he clocked up some decent stats in the match.

Clearances6
Blocked shots2
Interceptions3
Total tackles1
Dribbled past0
Ground duels (won)1 (1)
Aerial duels (won)3 (3)
Touches83
Accurate passes62/68 (91%)
Shots blocked1

De Ligt registered six clearances, blocked two shots, saw one of his own efforts blocked, and weighed in with three interceptions and one tackle.

Nobody managed to dribble past him either, and he also won all three of his aerial duels as well as his lone ground duel.

In addition, De Ligt got plenty of touches on the ball (83) and registered a good passing accuracy of 91 percent.

Joshua Zirkzee also did well, his substitution proving game-changing as he made himself available for passes from midfield – he was a vast improvement on Rasmus Hojlund.

Nevertheless, Amad was the clear standout in the match as he single-handedly turned the game around with his late hat-trick.

Interestingly, Southampton’s Tyler Dibling did so well against Man United that fans were calling for the club to sign him, and Dibling is believed to be a target for the Red Devils.