Joshua Zirkzee got his Manchester United career off to the perfect start by scoring late on in the 1-0 win over Fulham. The Red Devils looked to be heading for a first goalless draw with the Cottagers in 100 years on Friday night, only for summer signing Zirkzee to poke home in the 87th minute. Zirkzee - a £36million arrival from Atalanta - came off the bench to get on the end of Bruno Fernandes' cross to steer the ball home into the bottom left corner in what was just his seventh touch.
The result means that United have now won a record-extending 22 Premier League opening day wins to briefly send them to the top of the table. And they set a Premier League record merely by stepping onto the grass at the Theatre of Dreams against Fulham. Their home game on the first day of the 2024/25 season means that of the last 11 Premier League seasons, United have started ten at Old Trafford.
In fact, their last eight season openers have all been played at home and this has seen them become the first side in Premier League history to start a campaign with a home game in eight seasons consecutively. United have also exacted revenge on Fulham, who left it late to win 2-1 at Old Trafford last season. It was the Red Devils' first defeat of 2024 - and they can count themselves lucky Fulham didn't make the most of their numerous second half chances this time around.
Marco Silva's men were a constant threat on the counter, but they failed to find the final killer ball - and they were made to pay for it. For United, they have bounced back brilliantly from last weekend's Community Shield defeat to rivals Manchester City. And surprisingly, Jadon Sancho, who missed in the penalty shootout, has been left out of the matchday squad, despite an impressive pre-season on his return to the club.
2017/18 - Man United vs West Ham (4-0) 2018/19 - Man United vs Leicester City (2-1) 2019/20 - Man United vs Chelsea (4-0) 2020/21 - Man United vs Crystal Palace (1-3) 2021/22 - Man United vs Leeds United (5-1) 2022/23 - Man United vs Brighton (1-2) 2023/24 - Man United vs Wolves (1-0) 2024/25 - Man United vs Fulham (1-0) Though summer signing Noussair Mazraoui made his United debut following his switch from Bayern Munich. Starting at right-back, the Morocco international showed his quality, and put in a vital challenge to deny Alex Iwobi early on. However his ex-Bayern teammate Matthijs de Ligt , who has joined United in a deal rising to £43million, had to settle for a place on the bench.
But the night belongs to Zirkzee, who sparked wild scenes inside Old Trafford with a beautifully, deft finish. With Rasmus Hojlund out for the foreseeable future, he will now be hoping to get the nod over Marcus Rashford up top away at Brighton next week. Zirkzee has become just the fourth Dutchman after Ruud van Nistelrooy, Donny van de Beek and Alexander Buttner to score on their United debut.
Speaking to Sky Sports after his man of the match display, he said: "To win here on my debut, and grab a goal, it couldn't be better. "I've been told [to score at the Stretford End of Old Trafford] is one of the best feelings ever. "I'm very blessed that I could experience it in my first game.
It's an amazing feeling. "To get the win is what the fans deserve, but to have this extra feeling [having scored] is just beautiful. "I feel very warm here, it's a great squad.
We want to achieve something great. I'm taking it in, day by day." Sign Up Offer: Bet £10 and get a free bet on EVERY Premier League game for the first three weekends of the season - CLAIM HERE T&Cs: 18+ New customers only.
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