1. Can Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic play with each other?
The arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Old Trafford this summer has guaranteed United goals, his record doesn’t suggest otherwise.
The former Sweden captain may go missing for large periods of games this season, like he did today, but you can be assured that he will be in the right place at the right time to get his name on the score-sheet in plenty of matches throughout the season.
Although Ibrahimvoic has the goalscoring instinct, he has an increasing habit of going deeper and deeper in search of the ball, especially when cuts an isolated and frustrated figure.
Rooney though, who Mourinho has revealed will play behind the main striker, not in midfield this year, may not he the perfect partner for the former PSG striker. The England captian who turns 31 in October, no longer possess the pace or stamina to counteract Ibrahimovic’s deficiencies.
With Henrikh Mkhitaryan remaining on the bench for most of the game, the Armenian must feel he is the man to get the most out of Ibrahimvoic, and indeed the rest of the team. His 15 league assists last season, the most in the Bundesliga, shows that he could be right.
2. Is there room for van Gaal favourites in Mourinho’s United?
After his first official game in charge, we are no closer to knowing what a Jose Mourinho Manchester United team will look like, but as history shows, it probably won’t be until the start of next season that he really makes his mark at the club.
Antonio Valenica, Daley Blind, Marcus Rojo, Marouane Fellaini, Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata all featured at Wembley this afternoon, but how many of those six players will be around this time next season?
Valencia excelled at right-back today, but he has shown his limitations and is a liability defensively, while Blind doesn’t possess the physical attributes Mourinho likes in a defender.
Rojo has never settled in England, Fellaini was culpable for Leicester’s equaliser and Mata was sacrificed late on for tactical reasons, despite the Spaniard himself coming on as a substitute in the second-half.
Lingard may be the only one to still be around at Old Trafford next season, even if question marks remain over the 23-year-old’s overall quality at the very highest level.
3. Will Leicester be able to have the same success replicating the same tactics?
It’s never wise to make an assessment of a team after their first competitive game of the season, but there was nothing to suggest that the Leicester City Tinkerman has any plans to change last season’s winning formula.
The Premier League champions were prepared to sit back and soak up the pressure at the home of English football toady, much like they did last season that proved so successful. Losing N’Golo Kanté will come as a big blow to the way they play, although new signing Nampalys Mendy could prove to be an able deputy.
However, it looks as it will be essential the Foxes hold on to the quick-footed Riyad Mahrez as the transfer market shows that these type of players are not freely available.
Once the season kicks into gear, Claudio Ranieri’s side will see the games come thick and fast, as they embark on their maiden Champions League campaign. They may not be fresh enough to work harder, run faster and prepare better than their opposition this season.
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Juan Mata will still be a hell of a nice guy long after the prince of darkness has been driven out of Manchester. I, for one, stand with Juan, will any other United fans join me.
Usually I don’t agree with you but I agree with you for this
He’ll be gone sooner than usual this time.
Mata is an honest player that always gives his all. Very disrespectful to attempt to embarrass him today by Mourinho. He has no class.
Any “other” United fans Emily? Are you saying you’re a United fan now?
Ya haha I thought she was anti man Utd
Anti Christ more like !!
You know Leicester looked very good today. They mightn’t have the steep drop off most people are expecting.
Shane made a good point there in the last paragraph. These champions league games will pitch strain on their squad depth. They went out of both cups early and were lucky with injuries so got the luxury of playing the same team most weeks.
I’m calling it now, either emily, alan and sean are the same person or they are some sort of freaky love triangle that loves role play while wearing United shirts and leather chaps.
I’m sure you’re right Bognor. Must be very tiring having to log in and out of his/her various accounts and making sure not to end up contradicting him/herself :-)
Emily is not a man Utd fan. She is a negative “woman” who just criticises everything and loves starting a fight. She said something nice about mata and I was gobsmacked. I couldn’t believe it.
Alan is a sad Liverpool fan who loves to mock man Utd even though his team is an embarrassment. Dunno who Emily supports but if it is man Utd she is very critical of them and not a true fan. I, on the other fan, am a man Utd and Kerry fan who hates Liverpool and Dublin.
Fan=hand*
Emil He is actually a Liverpool fan Sean (or so s/he claims) but spends much more time on United threads spouting poison rather than Liverpool threads talking positively about the team s/he allegedly supports. Say her/him on a Liverpool thread last night and, guess what, s/he was having a dig at United.
*saw
By the way Sean you may lose support of many MU fans here with your remark about Dublin.
I knew she wasn’t a man Utd fan! Sorry about the dig at Dublin but as a kerryman its just impossible to like Dublin. It’s a severe rivalry. I just hate how dubs say they’re good just because they’re naturally gifted. But with 1.2 million of the population and most of state funding it’s hard for Dublin not to succeed. Dublin just have a huge advantage. But the Kerry Dublin rivalry is tense. I’m sure dubs feel the same about Kerry people. Nothing against Dublin people just the gaa team!!
With w*nkers like diarmuid Connolly and Philly McMahon in the team I find it hard to like them
Spent my summers in Ventry growing up. Some spot. GGMU
Beautiful area. The home of the great paidi o se
Interesting how your amazing virtue doesn’t apply to the army of sado United fans plaguing Liverpool threads. Mourinho is a $cumbag, sorry if I’m not going to let you all forget that but you’ll agree with me eventually.
God are that desperate for attention Emily that you come back to a story from yesterday to comment again. Think you need to get out more , maybe get yourself a boyfriend or something with batteries to pass the time
Based on that performance we can safely say United won’t be a threat to anyone this season.
If the players have any morals they will stop playing for the club until the sexual harasser is fired based in his actions today.
You speak of morals yet you pretend to be a woman
Blahahahahaha