Manchester United 2-1 Leicester City: 4 key takeaways
At long last, the Premier League returned on Friday evening, when Manchester United welcomed Leicester City to Old Trafford for the inaugural fixture of the English Premier League. The wait was less tedious than usual with the World Cup stealing most of the break, but it's exciting to see weekly games back on our screens.
Onto the action on the pitch, Paul Pogba opened the scoring with a penalty kick after a rapid start by United, before the pace of the game diminished as Mourinho's side sat back, which allowed Leicester to dictate play. The game, however, found life again in the final ten minutes when Luke Shaw found himself in the Leicester box and expertly finished to claim his first senior goal.
During injury time, Jamie Vardy took advantage of a breakdown in communication between De Gea and Bailly to nod in and cause concern in the last minute for United, but the Red Devils held on to open the season with a 2-1 victory.
Here are some things we can take away from the game.
#1 A disciplined Pogba leads United
Pogba returned to training in Manchester last Monday, following an extended break due to a successful World Cup tournament with France. After confirming his fitness to Mourinho, he was handed the captain's armband and relished the pressure that comes with. From the off, his passing range was a catalyst of United's attacks, and he also converted an early penalty.
But that wasn't the most surprising aspect of his performance. Pogba was mature throughout and showed his talent without holding the ball too long, moving it quickly and getting forward with supporting runs. The Frenchman also protected his own net impressively, particularly when Leicester swung balls into the box.
Even when not fully sharp, he showed he can be the main figure of the team and must replicate this on a weekly basis as his individual game is so influential to the way United play.