Head over heels
Rashford’s last-gasp strike maintains Mourinho’s perfect United record
Nothing in football, other than transfers, is decided in August. Titles are not won on sodden summer evenings like this and there is always the risk of looking foolish when you draw conclusions based on just three league games, but Manchester United have certainly got their swagger back under Jose Mourinho.
There is an arrogance about this United side, flowing from the manager down, that even at this embryonic stage of the campaign, does not look misplaced.
You could sense it when they entered the KCOM Stadium, it was there in the pre-match warm-up drills. You could see it when they stood with hands on their hips before the first whistle, it was there when they celebrated Marcus Rashford’s late winner – and it was obvious when they boarded the team bus with a win that means they go into the international break joint top of the Premier League.
That will upset plenty of people, of course, and there will be plenty of smirking should things go wrong under their Portuguese super-manager, but it should delight United supporters. They must feel as though they have got their team back after the dreary Louis van Gaal years.
Hull’s effort should not be ignored. They are performing superbly in adversity, and Rashford’s goal, after good work from Wayne Rooney to pick him out in a crowded area, was a little cruel. But this was a classic United win, born out of that trademark, relentless belief that a goal will come, even when it looked as though they were heading for the first setback of the Mourinho era.
Teams that go on to win things win games like this, turning one point into three, even when there are obvious deficiencies in their performance. Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic looked slow and ponderous, lacking the speed and mobility to get away from Hull’s tight marking. Their rivals will have noticed that.
Paul Pogba was off the pace, especially when playing in a deep defensive role in the first half, and Anthony Martial was woeful. On the plus side, Eric Bailly was immense at the back, the rejuvenation of Marouane Fellaini as a defensive midfielder continues and there was an eye-catching cameo from Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Hull, though, played their part. The Tigers are not tamed easily, despite the turmoil they have been through during a summer in which they have lost the most successful manager in the club’s history, Steve Bruce, as well as their best player, Mo Diamé.
He may still be only the caretaker manager, but Mike Phelan has done a remarkable job in the toughest of circumstances, coping not only with a lack of new signings but also an injury list that means he has only 14 fit senior players.
Desperate for a chance to prove he has what it takes to become a manager after spending 13 years on the coaching staff at Manchester United, Phelan is eager to be given a job others have swerved.
The odds remain stacked against him. A takeover is close, but not close enough to have any impact on the club’s spending power in this window. When the new owners eventually take control, there is every chance they will want to appoint their own manager.
But Phelan deserves to be in the running. Two wins out of two before this means that Hull may need only eight more wins and a handful of draws to avoid relegation. Whatever happens, Phelan has got them off to a better start than anyone predicted.
Hull were cleverly organised, and although they allowed United to dominate territory and possession they did not give them many chances in the first half other than a header from Ibrahimovic that went over and a shot from Rooney that was blocked on the line by the magnificent Curtis Davies.
Ibrahimovic, though, should have scored just before half-time, but after he had done the hard work of getting the ball under control and around goalkeeper Edin Jakupovic, his back-heel went wide.
United were going to have to be patient, although Mourinho ordered them to move the ball quicker, looking for balls through, rather than just across, Hull’s defensive lines.
United were sharper and stronger in the tackle in the second half. They rarely let Hull get out of their half. The pressure kept on building. Ibrahimovic almost scored with a snap-shot that was deflected wide. Pogba almost scored with a shot from 30 yards after spotting Jakupovic out of position.
Rooney dragged another effort wide, Ibrahimovic repeatedly failed to control the ball properly in the area. Pogba fluffed a free-kick, much to the delight of the home support. Rashford, on for Juan Mata, was denied by an excellent low save.
Hull appeared to have clung on, and David Meyler might have won it for them in the closing stages but fired over. Rashford did not make the same mistake with a clinical side-footed finish from six yards.
It has been a difficult season for the teenager in many ways. He has lost his place in the starting line-up at United following the arrival of Ibrahimovic and has also been demoted from the senior England side by new manager Sam Allardyce, who he feels he will be better off in the Under-21s.
Mourinho, though, prickles at any suggestion that he does not rate him, and it was Rashford’s introduction from the bench against a tiring Hull team that gave United another dimension in attack – as well as a winning goal.
Hull City (4-2-3-1): Jakupovic 7; Elmohamady 7, Davies 8, Livermore 8, Robertson 7; Meyler 6, Huddlestone 6; Clucas 7, Snodgrass 6 (Maloney 48), Hernandez 5; Diomandé 5. Subs Kuciak (g), Maguire, Bowen, Olley, Clackstone, Hinchliffe. Booked Huddlestone, Myler. Manchester United (4-2-3-1): De Gea 6; Valencia 6, Bailly 8, Blind 7, Shaw 5; Pogba 6, Fellaini 6; Mata 5 (Rashford 71), Rooney 7 (Smalling 94), Martial 4 (Mkhitaryan 61); Ibrahimovic 6. Subs Romero (g), Young, Herrera, Schneiderlin. Booked Fellaini, Rashford, Rooney. Referee J Moss (West Yorkshire).