Donny van de Beek won praise for an impressive midfield performance as Manchester United saw off Istanbul Basaksehir 4-1 to retake control of their Champions League group.
United pulled off two upsets in their opening two Group H games as they beat PSG and RB Leipzig, but a 2-1 reverse in Turkey to Basaksehir pulled the Red Devils back into a battle to qualify.
However, United blitzed Basaksehir in the first half as a Bruno Fernandes brace and a Marcus Rashford penalty left Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side three goals up within 36 minutes.
United sagged a little from then on as Deniz Turuc’s free-kick saw the visitors rally late on, but Dan James’ late goal sealed the result for Solskjaer.
The victory means United need just one point from their remaining two group games to qualify for the last-16 of the competition, while summer signing Van de Beek also put in a statement performance.
Playing in a deeper role alongside Fred, Van de Beek controlled the game and linked well with the likes of Fernandes to see United put in a slick attacking performance.
Van de Beek also played a key role in James’ late goal, setting Mason Greenwood free for the assist, and a former United midfielder were suitably impressed.
Working as a pundit for BT Sport, Owen Hargreaves said Van de Beek’s display was “close to perfect.”
Hargreaves added: "Van de Beek is so unselfish that he can just fit in. I think he's played himself into the starting lineup."
