Patrice Evra: Forced a corner in the first minute and another seven minutes later and played with fire. Unable to repeat those forward forays until the closing stages but displayed courage to fly into a couple of aerial duels. Beaten by the slippery Nasri on a couple of occasions but wasn't often caught out defensively.

Ji-sung Park: A surprise choice in midfield after so long on the sidelines and he inevitably had to work hard to keep up with the pace of the game. Nonetheless, he tried to shut Toure down in midfield and made his fair share of tackles. Had a rare sight of goal for United when blazing over a Nani corner in the first half.

Michael Carrick: Probably United's best perfomer on the night. Had an early shout for a penalty when Kompany appeared to block his effort with a hand and made some smart passes forward to Wayne Rooney. Hustled the Blues impressively and made a number of top-quality challenges. A foul on Barry was less well timed and he was booked.

Paul Scholes: Classy and crafty as ever in midfield, playing short passes around as though it comes naturally when everyone is moving at 100 miles per hour around him. When he came off, the Reds lost a creative spark but he understandably tired when having to deal with City's energetic midfielders. Showed his fire by squaring up to Toure at one point, even though the Ivorian is virtually twice his size.