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Manchester United faced Chelsea at Old Trafford to kick off their Premier League season and the Red Devils won the game 4-0. For Manchester United, Marcus Rashford scored two goals, while Anthony Martial and Daniel James got one each.
In the first half of the match, Chelsea started stronger as Tammy Abraham hit the post and Mason Mount drew out a save from David de Gea. United took the lead though as Rashford won a penalty against the run of play and converted it.
The home side looked more comfortable after the first goal and started dominating possession. Towards the end of the half, Emerson struck the post and Chelsea went into the second half trailing United by a goal.
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In the second half of the match, Chelsea started stronger but United again picked the Blues out on the counter as Martial doubled the hosts' advantage and minutes after that, Rashford scored again to kill the game. United weren't done though as substitute Daniel James scored on his Premier League debut for his new club.
All in all, it was a pretty entertaining game of football and in this slideshow, we are going to take a look at the five talking points from the game:
#5 Aaron Wan-Bissaka is already a fan favorite
When Manchester United splashed out around £50m for a young right-back in Aaron Wan-Bissaka, many questions were raised about the fee but those have been answered brilliantly by the youngster.
Throughout pre-season and now against Chelsea, he showed his tremendous capability of making successful tackles and not letting an attacker go past him.
At one instance in the first half, Chelsea were counter-attacking with Ross Barkley and Wan-Bissaka made a tremendous sliding challenge, showing his tackling quality and that earned him a huge round of applause from Old Trafford.
The 21-year-old has already started having influence on this United side and Solskjaer would be delighted by the way the young Englishman has fit into the team.
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#4 Harry Maguire impresses on his debut for United
The pressure was on Harry Maguire after he signed for United on a world-record fee for a defender, and he couldn't have asked for a better debut as he was named the Man of the Match against Chelsea. The Englishman didn't let pressure get the better of him and impressed massively for his new club.
Keeping a clean sheet on his debut would have pleased him and it is good to note that he looked comfortable alongside Lindelof, even though it was their first outing together. It's not as if United dominated the game, as Chelsea were attacking with intent but Maguire was very strong both positionally and aerially. All in all, it was a great day for the English center half.
#3 United were absolutely devastating on the counter-attack
Before the start of this game, everyone including Chelsea knew that United's strength is their pace in transitions but the away side couldn't do anything to prevent this. Almost every goal that the Red Devils scored was by converting defense into attack.
While Manchester United lost the midfield battle on the day, some of the passes that Paul Pogba executed were absolutely amazing. The Frenchman got himself two assists and the ball he played to Rashford in particular for United's third was absolutely exquisite.
United's fourth on the day underlined their style perfectly as Pogba made a marauding run forward before picking out James, who saw his shot nestle into the bottom corner after taking a deflection.
#2 Chelsea weren't clinical enough in front of goal
When one looks at the scoreline, it feels like the home side dominated proceedings, but it didn't pan out like that, especially in the first half as Chelsea created a lot of openings but weren't clinical.
Tammy Abraham had a great chance very early on in the game as he struck the post, while Barkley's effort was saved by De Gea. Also, Emerson hit the post during the dying minutes of the first half.
In the second half too, the Londoners worked the ball really well and they were creating chances but as soon as that second goal went in, Chelsea got pegged back. Only if the away side had taken their chances in the first half, the result could have been completely different.
#1 Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial shine for United
Before the start of the game, most of the build-up was about United not replacing Romelu Lukaku and the lack of proven goalscorers at the club. Rashford and Martial over the last couple of seasons have been inconsistent in front of goal, so the questions asked were right. But against Chelsea, they proved their qualities.
Both of them got on the scoresheet and Rashford could've scored a hat-trick. The first goal on the day for United and Rashford was a penalty which the Englishman himself won and scored.
Martial scored United's second as he tucked in a brilliant cross from Andreas Pereira. United's third and Rashford's second was a brilliant goal as Pogba picked out the 21-year-old with a delicious ball, which the Englishman brought down nicely before slotting it into the net. There is a lot of pressure on Martial and Rashford this season and it is fair to say that they have started exceedingly well.
