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With Antonio Valencia heavily criticised for his performance in Manchester United's FA Cup defeat by Arsenal on Monday, right-back Rafael da SIlva has chosen a great time to remind manager Louis van Gaal of his qualities.
The Brazilian scored a sublime lob for the United U-21s against Tottenham last night in a 1-1 draw.
The 24-year-old has made a total of 10 appearances for the Old Trafford side this season. He has not played for the first-team since January, when he suffered a fractured cheekbone and was forced off at half-time in the FA Cup tie against Yeovil.
WATCH: RAFAEL'S WONDER-GOAL ON TUESDAY
Show all 24 1 /24Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings David De Gea Without him United could have been humiliated. A save from Cazorla seemed frankly impossible but the Spaniard made it look merely ordinary. 8
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Antonio Valencia A horror show from the Ecuadorian. Woeful defending allowed Monreal through to score and his back pass then allowed Welbeck through for the second. 3
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Chris Smalling He never seems to look comfortable in the United defence. His loose pass early on to Sanchez summed up yet another careless performance. 5
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Marcos Rojo The least poor of a dreadful performance by the United defence, he seemed to be nervy around Welbeck, particularly when playing at centre-back. 5
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Luke Shaw Struggled to deal with the direct running of Oxlade-Chamberlain whilst also offering little of his usual attacking skill. Unsurprisingly he lasted just 45 minutes. 4
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Daley Blind Often found himself overrun as he looked to protect a leaky defence on his own, his role in the game diminished after Carrick’s arrival. 5
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Ander Herrera Made good runs early on, Fellaini couldn’t find him. Unfortunately he was hauled off at half-time as his colleagues gave him few opportunities. 5
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Angel Di Maria His best game for some time, with his left-foot deliveries causing chaos for Mertesacker. Then he ruined it all by grabbing the referee’s shirt. 5
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Marouane Fellaini Another big-money signing who shone, his physicality caused Arsenal’s defence all sorts of panic. But as a forward he lacks any real confidence in front of goal. 6
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Ashley Young United’s star outfield player’s contest with Bellerin was thrilling in which the Englishman often got the better, though his final pass was lacking. 7
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Wayne Rooney Oozed confidence throughout, scoring a wonderful header and running powerfully at the Arsenal defence with menace. 7
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Best off the bench: Michael Carrick His passing radar kept United ticking and allowed them to dominate possession, even if that wasn’t enough to carry his side through. 6
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Wojciech Szczesny A dropped cross in the first half could have been calamitous as throughout the match he seemed to be lacking the confidence usually associated with him. 5
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Hector Bellerin An early yellow card put a target on his back but he continued in his usual fashion, a pacey presence in attack and defence. 6
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Per Mertesacker Implausibly gave away a corner early on as nerves looked to be getting the better of him, he struggled aerially against Fellaini and Rooney. 5
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Laurent Koscielny The Frenchman brought invaluable composure to the Arsenal defence, the rarity with which he ever had to step in a testament to his organisational skills. 7
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Nacho Monreal Exceptionally threatening going forward, he picked up a well-deserved goal. But the Spaniard was too timid around Di Maria, giving him space to cross. 6
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Francis Coquelin A quiet game from the powerful Frenchman but that is just what Wenger would have wanted. His tackling continues to be ferocious. 6
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Santi Cazorla His range of passing was vital to Arsenal’s counters and he even displayed his recently discovered tackling ability when the visitors needed to defend. 7
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain Enjoyed his duel with Shaw and his powerful running created Arsenal’s first. The visitors missed his explosiveness after he went off injured. 7
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Mesut Ozil Peppered the contest with moments of pure class, his understanding of space and his colleagues’ movements brightened Arsenal’s play and found their first goal. 8
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Alexis Sanchez As ever the Chilean was full of energy and menace, his passes always seeming to put Arsenal in a more dangerous attacking position. 8
Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Danny Welbeck He even managed to make an open goal look difficult but nevertheless he got his goal and his energy caused problems for Rojo. 7
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Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 player ratings Best off the bench: Aaron Ramsey His driving runs from deep gave United’s defence another problem to deal with. His presence on defence was invaluable when United chased an equaliser. 7
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The Ecuadorian, 29, was caught out of position to allow Nacho Monreal to open the scoring for Arsenal, and then played a woeful back-pass to assist Danny Welbeck for the Gunners' decisive second.
Read more: Manchester United 1 Arsenal 2 match report Van Gaal unhappy with criticism of Falcao Wenger praises Arsenal's 'great mentality'
"I want to apologise to my team-mates and the fans of Manchester United," Valencia wrote on Instagram. "Tomorrow is another day and keep working."
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