Manchester United hosted Leicester this Saturday at Old Trafford in Premier League’s Matchday 5. The Red Devils didn’t play the great expected football, but at least did their homework, as they defeated the Foxes 1-0, thanks to Marcus Rashford, who opened the scoring from the Penalty spot. The visitors improved in the second half, and had chances to level, and even grab the three points, but wasted too many chances. With the result, the Red Devils jumped to the fourth position with eight points.
With major absences such as Paul Pogba, Manchester United came in with a more alternative lineup, with Matic, Andreas Pereira, and McTominay among the starters. The team, however, opened the scoring before ten minutes. Rashford was fouled inside the area as the referee awarded United the penalty. The young Englishman stepped up and scored. 1-0 United with 8 on the clock.
Despite the goal, United had a hard time keeping the possession. Leicester finished off the first half with 55 percent of the ball and more attempts on target. The good James Maddison was Leicester’s most dangerous man, especially from set-pieces. However, even with the poor offensive performance so far, United’s defense looked pretty solid.
After the break, Manchester United came back into the pitch with a more reactive posture into the match. Leicester capitalized on that and had some good opportunities to level the match. The closest one was through Maddison, who took a free-kick and almost slotted into David De Gea’s top corner, as the ball went wide.
Despite Leicester’s offensive impetuous, they were not able to break into United’s defense, as the scoring remained like that. Following the 1-0 win, United will prepare themselves to initiate their UEFA Europa League campaign this Thursday. In the Premier League, they got into the top four, with eight points.