Manchester United was off to a flying start in the Premier League as the Red Devils crashed West Ham United 4-0 in their opening match this season.
There was much optimism after a pretty successful pre-season and the Red Devils backed it up with an excellent performance. Romelu Lukaku announced his arrival in thumping fashion as the Belgian forward scored a brace to guide his team top of the Premier League table.
Anthony Martial and Paul Pogba also were on the target as the Red Devils romped in four goals past a hapless Joe Hart who was in the Hammers goal for the first time. There was much anticipation after the Hammers signed former United striker Javier Hernandez but the Mexican striker was kept quiet by a very dominating United defence.
Mourinho preferred to give new signing Nemanja Matic a start and it turned out to be a masterstroke as the Serbian midfield enforcer pulled strings in the middle of the pitch and his presence in the midfield gave more freedom to Pogba who had a pretty good day in the office. Here are three talking points from this tie:
Matic Could Be The Key Player
United splashed a whopping £40m to bring the midfielder from Chelsea and the 29-year-old has already started to make his presence felt and in his first game for the Red Devils, he has adjudged the man of the match for his spirited performance in the centre of the pitch.
The first goal came from Matic’s brilliance. The midfielder intercepted a ball and passed it on to Marcus Rashford who made a sumptuous run and laid an inch perfect pass to Lukaku, who latched on the ball and finished the move with a cool finish.
In Matic, United have found a new Roy Keane who used to dominate the midfield with his physical power and sheer precision. Michael Carrick’s influence in the team cannot be ignored but the English midfielder lacks that tenacity which Matic has.
The Romelu Lukaku factor
The Belgian power man showed why Mourinho splashed the cash to bring him to the Old Trafford. A supremely built player, Lukaku started the proceedings where Zlatan Ibrahimovic had left last season.
The Swede was the sole provider of goals but Lukaku has shown he can surpass the talismanic super star with his goal scoring skills.
Daley Blind- A Man Of Many Parts
The Dutch international hardly made any errors in the left back position as United went on to dominate the game. Left back has been a problematic position for the Red Devils but Blind has shown that if he is given ample chances, he could give a stiff competition to Luke Shaw.
