The Province

Rashford picks Hull of a time to rescue United

Teen substitute’s late winner keeps club’s perfect record intact

- Steve Douglas

MANCHESTER, England — With Zlatan Ibrahimovi­c having an off day, Manchester United turned to a striker at the opposite end of his career to keep its winning run going Saturday in the English Premier League.

Marcus Rashford came off the bench and scored two minutes into injury time to give United a 1-0 victory at Hull, lifting the team alongside Chelsea with a maximum nine points.

The 18-year-old Rashford was a revelation in last season’s second half, scoring eight goals after coming from the youth setup to solve an injury crisis, but has been displaced by off-season signing Ibrahimovi­c under new coach Jose Mourinho.

He has just given Mourinho some thinking to do.

Rashford came on in the 71st minute with United struggling to break down Hull’s stoic defence and in danger of dropping points for the first time. Along with fellow sub Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Rashford changed the dynamic of the game with his direct running and was on hand to tap in the winning goal after Wayne Rooney raced clear down the left and sent over a cross.

“We did everything to win,” Mourinho said. “I know when you score (in) minute 90-something, you talk of a bit of luck. But we were so dominant, so intense in our attacking wave.”

United has won its first three games of the season for the first time since 2011, when Alex Ferguson was still in charge. It’s early days, but United under Mourinho is beginning to have the same aura as Ferguson’s sides and even scoring goals in so-called “Fergie Time.”

The 34-year-old Ibrahimovi­c was well-shackled by Hull’s defence and missed out on becoming only the second United player to score in his first four games for the club.

Chelsea had it much easier against another promoted club.

Eden Hazard, Willian and Victor Moses scored in a 3-0 win over Burnley at Stamford Bridge with a ruthless performanc­e reminiscen­t of those produced in the team’s title-winning campaign in 201415, when Mourinho was Chelsea coach.

Hull and Manchester City started the weekend as the other teams with perfect records after two games. City hosts West Ham on Sunday.

Leicester and Arsenal, the top two teams last season, racked up their first wins at the third attempt and their star attackers were back on the scoresheet.

Jamie Vardy set defending champion Leicester on its way to a 2-1 win over Swansea at King Power Stadium. Wes Morgan added a second goal and Leicester winger Riyad Mahrez had a penalty saved before Leroy Fer pulled a goal back for the visitors.

Alexis Sanchez was the inspiratio­n behind Arsenal’s 3-1 victory at Watford, earning a ninth-minute penalty converted by Santi Cazorla, scoring himself and then setting up Mesut Ozil for the third goal before halftime.

Tottenham and Liverpool are two more teams hoping to be in the mix for the top four, perhaps even the title, and they drew 1-1 in a frenetic match at White Hart Lane.

Two left backs scored with James Milner’s penalty for Liverpool cancelled out by Danny Rose’s 72nd-minute strike. Tottenham has five points, one more than Liverpool.

Everton kept up its unbeaten start under new coach Ronald Koeman by beating Stoke 1-0, courtesy of a penalty from Leighton Baines that struck the post, hit goalkeeper Shay Given on the head and rebounded in.

There were also two 1-1 draws between Southampto­n-Sunderland and Crystal Palace-Bournemout­h.

 ?? — GETTY IMAGES ?? Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford celebrates after scoring their late winning goal during an English Premier League match against Hull City on Saturday in Kingston upon Hull, England. Manchester United won the game 1-0.
— GETTY IMAGES Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford celebrates after scoring their late winning goal during an English Premier League match against Hull City on Saturday in Kingston upon Hull, England. Manchester United won the game 1-0.

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