On Friday, the second round of the new season started in the "Premier" league in England.
At "Old Trafford" stadium, the home team "Manchester United", supported by their fans, faced "Southampton" in the first match of the round. Zlatan Ibrahimovic's double allowed the "Red Devils" to celebrate a 2-0 victory.
From the beginning of the first half, the actions of "United" were much more active than in the first league game against "Bournemouth", with sharper passes reaching Zlatan Ibrahimovic more frequently.
However, the attempts to cause major problems for Fraser Forster were unsuccessful. The most serious opportunity in the middle of the first half came from Paul Pogba, who took a shot in the penalty area, but the attempt did not pose any major problems for the English goalkeeper.
Shortly after, the "Southampton" players also created a serious attack. During a penalty kick, the ball was passed into the penalty area, landing at Shane Long's feet, but his shot missed the target.
Both teams exchanged harmless shots from outside the penalty box. Wayne Rooney attempted a ground shot from about 20 meters, and S. Long also tried to finish the attack similarly for the "Saints".
As in the match against "Bournemouth", "United" also scored towards the end of the first half. In the 36th minute, W. Rooney lifted the ball towards the penalty area, where he found Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and he redirected the ball into the bottom corner of the goal with a strong header.
There were no more noteworthy moments in the first half, and both teams went to rest with "Man Utd" leading 1-0.
In the second half, "Southampton" started with a goal. However, S. Long's goal was canceled as it was scored offside.
Just a few minutes later, Luke Shaw entered the penalty area and was fouled by Jordy Clasie, earning a penalty, which Z. Ibrahimovic easily converted to score his second goal in the match.
Despite trying to recover, "Southampton" wasted several promising opportunities. On the other hand, "United" continued their attacks. During a corner kick, Paul Pogba had a chance to score, but his header sailed over the crossbar.
Shortly after, there was a commotion in front of F. Forster's goal. Initially, Anthony Martial entered the penalty area and took a shot, but he was blocked by "Saints" defender G. Van Dijk at the last moment. However, the Frenchman could have passed to Z. Ibrahimovic, who would have had an open goal.
In another attack after the same A. Martial's pass into the penalty area, L. Shaw had a chance, but the defender made a difficult pass towards the back line, which was intercepted. If not for the successful defending, a goal would have been highly likely.
Again, after a very short interval, another opportunity was created. Zlatan Ibrahimovic passed to A. Martial, who controlled the ball with his chest and prepared to take a close-range shot, but once again, the "Southampton" defenders intervened and saved the team from a potential disaster.
After this wave of attacks, the hosts slowed down, opening up opportunities for the visitors. The most active "Southampton" player, S. Long, had another chance, but his header missed the target.
During the remaining time, an interesting football game took place, with both teams trying to create scoring opportunities. However, neither team managed to achieve anything fruitful, and the match referee signaled the end of the game.
Result:
"Man Utd" 2 - 0 "Southampton"
36' [1 - 0] Z. Ibrahimovic
52' [2 - 0] Z. Ibrahimovic (penalty)
League Table:
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