Jose Mourinho's first game as Manchester United manager ended on a positive note, as expected, with the Red Devils emerging victorious against Wigan Athletic 2-0 at the DW Stadium on Saturday. The Portuguese was impressed with some of his new signings, including of Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Such matches always give teams the much needed preparation before the season starts, and Manchester United did put a good show. They were missing some of their keys players, who participated in the Euro 2016 campaign, and expect Morinho's team to be a dangerous unit when all the first team players come back into the manifold.
Mourinho's team enjoyed good possession in the first half, and they received their best chance in the 26th minute, but Memphis Depay could not find the back of the net after a splendid ball from Mkhitaryan, who was one of the lively players during the game.
Though United failed to break the deadlock in the first 45 minutes, Will Keane got his name on the scoresheet in the 49th minute. They looked a threatening side in the second half, as Andreas Pereira doubling the lead in the 58th minute.
United looked good on the attack, and their defence also stood firm where Wigan had the ball in attacking positions as well. Overall, this was a game, where the Red Devils were not tested much, and looked a good side, with Mkhitaryan being the standout player, who was praised by the manager after the match.
"Mkhitaryan is a top-class player and currently at the best stage for a footballer - 27/28 years old. He is magnificent the way he thinks about football, he thinks very quickly and it's so sweet how he touches the ball. He can play in different positions behind the striker. He doesn't have the sharpness yet but his performance was very positive," United's official website quoted Mourinho as saying.
Mourinho was also pleased with the positive performance his team showed, with just around 10 days of training.
"I'm happy because there were things we tried in training around some principles of our play defensively and offensively and I could see them. They were not perfect of course because the conditions are not the best with only 10 days of training, accumulation of fatigue and no sharpness, so it takes time. But I could see things that showed the players were starting to think in the way I think about football. That pleased me. Everybody played the match and everyone had a positive performance," said the manager.
