Opening fixture of the 2018-19 Premier League season took place on Friday evening 10, July, at Old Trafford, Paul Pogba captained Manchester United as the club attempted to persuade him to stay at the club, United were awarded a penalty inside 90 seconds after Leicester's Daniel Amartey handled in the box, Pogba - after a casual run-up - planted the spot kick in the top corner to give United the perfect start United struggled to build on their lead for long periods before left back Luke Shaw made the three points safe, after Jamie Vardy scored following a cross that came back off the post.
Pit, pat, pit, pat. Here comes Paul Pogba, for his penalty. Pit, pat, pit, pat. Little steps, a bizarre abstraction, as if he's started something for amusement's sake and now cannot stop. Pit, pat, pit, pat, pit, pat. He's getting nearer now, advancing on the ball, 14 little hops and counting, the stadium almost hushed, wondering what happens next.
Then the stride lengthens, and the comic vignette is at an end and the ball is in the roof of Kasper Schmeichel's net and Manchester United's season is off and running.
That is what winning a World Cup does for a player. It fills him up: with confidence, bravery, wit, imagination. Maybe that it what the captain's armband at Manchester United does, too, except Pogba has had that before and has rarely played with the swagger and certainty of Friday night. If this wasn't a statement United victory it was because Leicester remain very troublesome opponents, on their day, and few teams will find it easy against them.
Paul Pogba captained Manchester United, and gave them the perfect start with a penalty after just three minutes
Pogba - after a casual run-up - planted the spot kick in the top corner to give United the perfect start to the new season
The World Cup winning midfielder - linked with a move away from United - is congratulated by his team-mates for scoring
United struggled to build on their lead for long periods before left back Luke Shaw made the three points safe with this goal
The home side saw out the nervy last couple of minutes after Jamie Vardy scored following a cross that came back off the post
'We needed the players' fantastic spirit': Jose Mourinho
MATCH FACTS, LEAGUE TABLE AND MATCH ZONE
MANCHESTER UTD (4-3-3): De Gea 7; Darmian 5.5, Lindelof 6.5, Bailly 7, Shaw 6.5; Fred 7 (McTominay 76, 6), Pereira 6.5, Pogba 8 (Fellaini 83; Mata 7, Rashford 6 (Lukaku 67, 6), Sanchez 6
Unused subs: Grant, Smalling, Young, Martial
Goals: Pogba pen 3, Shaw 83
Bookings: Fred 54, Andreas 69
LEICESTER (4-2-3-1): Schmeichel 7; Amartey 6 (Ghezzal 63, 6), Morgan 6, Maguire 7, Chilwell 7; Ndidi 6, Silva 7 (Iborra 80); Ricardo 6, Maddison 7 (Vardy 63, 6), Gray 7; Iheanacho 6
Unused subs: Ward, Evans, Fuchs, Albrighton
Goal: Vardy 90+2
Bookings: Amartey 51, Maddison 54
Referee: Andre Marriner 7
Star man: Paul Pogba
Att: 74,439
Ratings by Chris Wheeler
Marcus Rashford ran hard but was unable to offer a consistent goal threat for Manchester United, as his heat map shows, and was replaced on 66 minutes.
United certainly didn't but neither side, to be fair, could field their strongest starting team so soon after the World Cup. United did not introduce Romelu Lukaku until midway through the second-half, Jamie Vardy came on for Leicester a little earlier.
Pogba captained in the absence of Antonio Valencia although seeing what it brought from him, will Mourinho be tempted to make the change permanent? He certainly seemed impressed with Pogba's willingness to play so soon after his exertions in Russia, and if the player's head has been turned by Barcelona as is claimed, he showed no sign of it with an energetic, diligent display.
A report this week claimed Manchester United got the most luck of all Premier League teams last season and it could be argued that is continuing. The handball given against Daniel Armatey from an Alexis Sanchez shot after two minutes looked harsh. He had his arms by his body and was turning away but Andre Marriner seized an early opportunity for involvement and pointed to the spot.
Up stepped Pogba, ahead of Marcus Rashford, starting striker and shoot-out scorer in Russia. And so it began, the extended pitter-patter run-up. Had Pogba missed, he would have been a laughing stock. He would have known that, too, but did it anyway. That is what a World Cup winners' medal gives you. Certainty. In his mind, it would never have been in doubt.
Pogba looked confident before he struck the penalty, performing a small-stepped, shimmying run up to the ball to shoot
Daniel Amartey gave away the penalty when he was judged to have handled in the area after an Alexis Sanchez shot
Luke Shaw had never scored a goal in senior football before he burst into the box and slotted into the far right hand corner
Shaw - who has previously been a magnet for criticism at United - is embraced after scoring what proved the winning goal
Jose Mourinho - who has been a vocal critic of Shaw's fitness and performances - celebrated the player's goal with gusto
Had Belgium won the World Cup, as many felt they would, perhaps Lukaku would have taken the wonderful opportunity to end the contest that was presented after 78 minutes, after Sanchez put him in with only Schmeichel to beat. Instead, like father like son at Old Trafford, the goalkeeper came charging out, spread himself and the ball clipped a leg and spun over the bar.
So it was left to Luke Shaw, of all people, to secure victory. Shaw has never scored a goal at senior level for any club, but this was beautifully taken, even if he got lucky with the set-up.
Shaw made an excellent run into space and receiving a cross-field pass from Juan Mata which he tried to lay off. That failed, but the ball flicked up, and Shaw smartly skipped around his man to claim it on the other side and slip the ball first time past Schmeichel.
Mourinho celebrated with gusto but, given his struggle for defensive reinforcements this summer, won't have liked the look of Leicester's late riposte – poached by Vardy after David De Gea and Eric Bailly had left a cross from Ricardo, which clipped the far post and came out to the lurking England striker.
So United got the breakthrough, but Leicester had significant possession in spells and threatened to do damage with it, too. What can never be underestimated, however, is that – the injury time mix-up notwithstanding – United have the best goalkeeper in the league.
Chelsea may have broken Liverpool's world record fee in the position this summer, but neither Alisson nor Kepa Arrizabalaga are a match for De Gea's shot-stopping. Real Madrid may have taken Thibaut Courtois but that was only because he was available and De Gea was not. The World Cup was not kind to him, but De Gea is, for now, still the goalkeeper to beat in the Premier League - and in the 26th minute, he demonstrated why that doesn't happen too often.
A sustained period of pressure from Leicester ended with Wilfred Ndidi squaring the ball into the box, where it fell to Maddison. He got a strong connection from close range, but somehow De Gea stretched out an arm and palmed it away. How his hand held so strong, who knows? It was one of those shots that test skeletal structure as much as agility or resolve. It would be hasty to declare the save of the season after one game, but it's fair to say we have a leader in the clubhouse.
Clearly, there is promise for United once at full strength. Fred will be some player once he adjusts to English football, too. At times here he looked exactly the sort to dovetail with Pogba in midfield; at others he appeared to need a shake of the reins to remind him that the game in this country, while not necessarily the best, is unique in its ferocious tempo and demands. That is why the season opens with the intensity of last night; and why it really should bring the best out of characters like Pogba more often.
Still, after such a miserable summer this was the fillip United needed. With a two goal cushion, Mourinho removed Pogba, but it didn't feel like judgement this time, more the pragmatic call of a manager who might not be feeling as negatively about his chances as some suspect. He's cunning like that.
Chelsea may have broken Liverpool's world record fee in the position this summer, but neither Alisson nor Kepa Arrizabalaga are a match for De Gea's shot-stopping. Real Madrid may have taken Thibaut Courtois but that was only because he was available and De Gea was not. The World Cup was not kind to him, but De Gea is, for now, still the goalkeeper to beat in the Premier League - and in the 26th minute, he demonstrated why that doesn't happen too often.
A sustained period of pressure from Leicester ended with Wilfred Ndidi squaring the ball into the box, where it fell to Maddison. He got a strong connection from close range, but somehow De Gea stretched out an arm and palmed it away. How his hand held so strong, who knows? It was one of those shots that test skeletal structure as much as agility or resolve. It would be hasty to declare the save of the season after one game, but it's fair to say we have a leader in the clubhouse.
Clearly, there is promise for United once at full strength. Fred will be some player once he adjusts to English football, too. At times here he looked exactly the sort to dovetail with Pogba in midfield; at others he appeared to need a shake of the reins to remind him that the game in this country, while not necessarily the best, is unique in its ferocious tempo and demands. That is why the season opens with the intensity of last night; and why it really should bring the best out of characters like Pogba more often.
Still, after such a miserable summer this was the fillip United needed. With a two goal cushion, Mourinho removed Pogba, but it didn't feel like judgement this time, more the pragmatic call of a manager who might not be feeling as negatively about his chances as some suspect. He's cunning like that.
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