Manchester United vs Fulham Review
Joshua Zirkzee had a fantastic debut for Manchester United, scoring a late goal that secured a narrow 1-0 victory against Fulham in the Premier League. This win marked the Red Devils’ record-extending 22nd consecutive opening day victory in the top flight.
Recently, there has been a growing sense of cautious optimism at Old Trafford following a successful transfer window, with new players Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt, and Noussair Mazraoui showcased on the field before the match. However, it felt as though this optimism was merely a temporary fix, nearly undone when André Onana had to be quick to deflect Kenny Tete’s powerful long-range shot.
Casemiro tried to capitalize on a poor short clearance from Bernd Leno to set up Bruno Fernandes, who unfortunately shot directly at the German goalkeeper. The combination of Casemiro and Fernandes nearly resulted in a goal again, but Leno was quick to respond to Fernandes’ attempt, eliciting a frustrated reaction from the Portuguese midfielder, marking their best opportunity before halftime.
Leno continued to excel for the Cottagers, making another impressive save to stop Mount after a brilliant long pass from Fernandes. Mainoo then missed the target following more strong build-up play from United on the left, providing Erik ten Hag with some hope. However, the team’s usual defensive weaknesses were evident, as Onana had to intervene to deflect a speculative shot from Rodrigo Muniz.
Fulham was finding success on the counter-attack against United’s weak defense, and if it weren’t for a fantastic goal-line clearance by Lisandro Martínez, former player Andreas Pereira could have punished the hosts for their defensive vulnerabilities. It seemed like it would be a challenging night for the Red Devils, who also struggled to be clinical in front of goal, with Tete cutting off Alejandro Garnacho’s cross aimed at Marcus Rashford in the box.
Zirkzee made his debut in the iconic red shirt just after the hour mark and delivered the decisive moment in the 87th minute. His impressive instinctive finish from Garnacho’s cross was a rare highlight in an otherwise lackluster attacking display from Ten Hag’s team, securing a hard-earned victory.
Marco Silva’s team nearly secured back-to-back away league victories against the Red Devils for the first time but Zirkzee’s goal prevented that from happening. Ten Hag’s team had a chance to enhance their lead, but Garnacho inexplicably missed an easy goal, highlighting the distance they still need to go to be considered genuine title contenders.
