It was the perfect start to the new Premier League for Manchester United as they secured a 2-1 victory over Leicester at Old Trafford.
The match got off to the perfect start as Paul Pogba netted from the penalty spot after just two minutes following a handball in the box.
United continue to battle and would eventually double their lead when Luke Shaw drilled a low effort into the net to secure his first ever senior goal. However, Mourinho's side were sent a late scare when Jamie Vardy headed in deep into injury time.
Speaking after the match Pogba spoke about the difficult return to club football, but praised his teammates for their efforts: “I didn’t have any pre-season game, I came back on Monday. It was very hard and difficult for the legs and stamina. But we played very well.”
Scroll down to see how the action unfolded from Old Trafford.
Storm clouds remain heavy over Manchester United with even this vital opening Premier League victory against Leicester City failing to lift the dark mood of Jose Mourinho.
Goals from Paul Pogba and Luke Shaw – which felt strangely appropriate given the uncertainty over their futures under Mourinho – were not enough for the manager to move on from his burning sense that he has been badly let down this summer by the club’s hierarchy.
Post-match and Mourinho was talking failed transfer targets and tricky pre-seasons – again – and he made a barbed comment about how managers nowadays should all be re-defined as head coaches such is the power they have had to cede to their clubs. A bit like the fable of the scorpion and the fox he just cannot help himself.
Goodness knows what Mourinho’s reaction would have been had United lost to a reshaped Leicester who preyed on that uncertainty and pushed and pushed before scoring in injury-time through substitute Jamie Vardy. The final play of the match was United watching nervously as a header from a Leicester corner, and with goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in the home penalty area, drifted wide.
The match itself was a microcosm of how Mourinho is perceived. It was either an important, encouraging win earned through managing the depleted resources available to him – for example using 22-year-old attacking midfielder such as Andreas Pereira in a deeper role – or another example that they are a maddeningly constrained curiosity given the vast resources available to them. They won; but they did not win convincingly.
Bola.com, Jakarta - Manchester United akan bersua Leicester City pada laga perdana Premier League di Stadion Old Trafford, Jumat (10/8/2018) atau Sabtu (11/8/2018) dini hari WIB. Tim asuhan Jose Mourinho dituntut meraih kemenangan untuk membuka musim ini dengan hasil positif.
The Red Devils meladeni tim tamu minus beberapa pemain terbaiknya. Antonio Valencia, Ander Herrera, Nemanja Matic, dan Marcos Rojo, masih bermasalah dengan cedera. Sedangkan dua pemain bintang Paul Pogba dan Romelu Lukaku belum dalam kondisi terbaik setelah libur Piala Dunia 2018.
Tanpa para pemain ini, Mourinho akan mengandalkan peran Alexis Sanchez untuk membobol gawang Leicester. Pergerakan striker asal Chile akan ditopang pemain yang diboyong dari Shakhtar Donetsk, Fred dan gelandang asal Spanyol, Juan Mata.
Di sisi lain, Leicester City mengusung modal berhasil menahan Manchester United 2-2 saat pertemuan terakhir di kandang sendiri pada musim lalu. Namun, daya ledak anak asuh Claude Puel di lini depan diragukan pascakepergian Riyad Mahrez ke Manchester City.
Kendati demikian, The Foxes tetap berpotensi menyulitkan tuan rumah. Kehadiran para pemain anyar seperti Jonny Evans, Ricardo Pereira, hingga Rachid Ghezzal membuat skuat Leicester City cukup kompetitif menatap musim ini.
Sahabat Bola.com bisa menyaksikan duel seru antara Manchester United melawan Leicester City secara langsung di RCTI pada Sabtu dini hari WIB. Berita video momen Juan Mata mencetak gol indah dari tendangan bebas ke gawang Leicester City. This video presented by BallBall.
MANCHESTER, KOMPAS.com - Manchester United menang tipis 2-1 atas Leicester City pada pertandingan pembuka Premier League - kasta teratas Liga Inggris, Jumat (10/8/2018) atau Sabtu dini hari WIB.
Dua gol kemenangan Manchester United pada pertandingan di Stadion Old Trafford itu dicetak oleh Paul Pogba pada menit ketiga dan Luke Shaw pada menit ke-83. Adapun gol balasan Leicester City dibukukan Jamie Vardy pada menit ke-90+2'.
Hasil ini meneruskan tren positif Manchester United yang selalu menang pada pertandingan pembuka Liga Inggris dalam empat musim beruntun atau sejak 2015-2016.
Baca juga: Bursa Transfer Telah Ditutup, Jose Mourinho Beri Pernyataan
18 - Jose Mourinho is unbeaten in all 18 of his opening league matches of a season as a manager (W11 D7), winning nine of his 10 in the Premier League (D1). Specialist. pic.twitter.com/yr2QXDovOf
