Manchester United vs. Everton: Cristiano Ronaldo is named on the substitutes bench as Andros Townsend grabs the equalizer

Midweek, Ronaldo scored a dramatic 95th-minute goal to secure a 2-1 win over Villarreal in the Champions League, but was unable to turn Saturday’s game in United’s favor.

Anthony Martial’s powerful shot put United ahead just before half-time, even though Everton deserved the equalizer.

Ronaldo entered the field just before the hour, but minutes after his arrival all he could do was watch the Everton equalizer with Andros Townsend shooting behind David de Gea after a fast break involving Demarai Gray and Abdoulaye Doucouré.

Everton may have snatched all three corner points, but Yerry Mina’s goal was disallowed for offside following a VAR review.

‘Siuuuu’ celebration

After scoring his fifth goal in nine Everton appearances, Townsend celebrated by mimicking Ronaldo’s “Siuuuu” cheer.

“Don’t imitate, it’s just a sign of respect for a guy who influenced my career,” Townsend told BT Sport.

“I spent many hours on the training ground and in the video room trying to analyze his free kicks and his passing and the way he dedicated himself to football.

“So it wasn’t an imitation, it was a sign of respect for one of my idols. I probably didn’t do the celebration justice and I didn’t do it correctly.”

The draw means that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have managed to win only two of their last six games in all competitions.

“We got off to a good start and scored a fantastic goal. In the second half we had a hard time getting a second. From our corner we suffer five seconds later, which is too much,” Solskjaer told BT Sport.

“We had enough players behind the ball, but we didn’t tackle things. We didn’t regroup and reorganize well enough.”

Everton was missing some key players through injury – notably strikers Richarlison and Dominic Cavert-Lewin – and Merseyside club manager Rafa Benitez said the draw was “mentally like a win”.

“To come here and perform the way we did, we were very close,” Benitez told BT Sport. “You have to be really proud of the players.

“We were doing well, it’s a shame we conceded because we were working hard. In the second half we reacted well and had a chance to win the game.

“Andros [Townsend] he is doing well, but the team has won, not just a player who has done well, and he was fantastic. The rest of the team worked hard with a fantastic performance. “