Manchester United started their defence of the International Champions Cup with a pleasing 1-0 win over Club America in Seattle. An early goal from Morgan Schneiderlin saw the Red Devils fairly comfortable in picking up three points. Here is what we learned:
1) Matteo Darmian will have no problem becoming 1st choice RB
Darmian pulled on the United shirt for his debut in the first half and was impressive on his 45-minute debut, covering a lot of ground across the back line as well as overlapping well with Mata on the right wing and making runs on the ball from deep, where he looked very comfortable. This is a stark contrast to the walking pace from that position which Antonio Valencia usually likes to come forward at, before making backwards passes anyway. Darmian is a real crowd-pleaser and has slotted right in at his new club.
2) Schneiderlin is made for this job
Morgan Schneiderlin sat deep in the United midfield along Michael Carrick – the man he will supposedly play understudy to – but outshone the silent workhorse of Old Trafford. Comfortable in making long and short passes, the Frenchman barely put a foot wrong in his 45 minute spell, and scored a beautiful header to boot. A very enjoyable debut for the new signing.
3) Andreas Pereira is determined for a first team spot
The second half saw the entire XI changed as Louis van Gaal looked to assess his squad and Andreas Pereira made a real statement of intent with his performance. He didn’t score or get an assist but was extremely vibrant and played as a box-to-box winger, creating chances galore for Januzaj and Wilson. A very confident performance from the U20 World Cup Final goalscorer. It seems his new contract has settled his nerves and given him a soapbox to stand on.
4) We really need to sign a striker
It goes without saying that 3 points and a clean sheet are what most teams hope for, especially in their first game back after the summer break, but United will be disappointed that they only won 1-0, with plenty of chances as aforementioned having been created. The second half saw Januzaj play in behind James Wilson and it’s great to see them in amongst the action but a world-class striker such as Lewandowski or Muller would have had a hat-trick with the chances provided by Pereira. That will come with experience for the youngsters but to really push on all fronts this season, a frontman definitely needs to come in alongside Rooney, or at least to compete with him and Memphis Depay.
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