da 888： Manchester United have surely improved from last season but last night’s European Super Cup with Real Madrid showed how far away they still are from Europe’s top sides. Los Blancos claimed a 2-1 win without ever coming close to top gear in a display that highlighted the Red Devils’ limitations both defensively and offensively.
da cassino online： There were some positives to take from the night in Skopje, however. Romelu Lukaku scored his first competitive goal for the Red Devils, Nemanja Matic looked solid in the middle of the park and after entering the fray from the bench at half-time, boy wonder Marcus Rashford went some way to bringing Jose Mourinho’s side back into the game.
Despite clocking just 45 minutes, Rashford finished up with the joint-most shots, successful dribbles, fouls won and attempted crosses of any United player, one of which resulted in an attempt at goal from one of the 19-year-old’s team-mates. He also came incredibly close to getting on the scoresheet himself after being released one-on-one with Keylor Navas, but the Real Madrid goalkeeper produced a smart, low save with his flailing foot.
That leaves Mourinho facing a similar headache to last season, namely whether he can actually reap the full benefits of the England international’s prodigious ability if he’s in the same side as a superstar striker of the Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic ilk. The Portuguese has just spent a staggering sum on the Belgian, so it seems unlikely he’ll be dropped for a player who didn’t cost the club a penny any time soon – regardless of how flawed that logic may seem.
But once again last night, the attacking midfield hub appeared to be United’s weakest department – which explains why Mourinho was so open about his interest in Gareth Bale before kickoff. Rashford’s positivity and pace could address that deficiency for the time being, but it probably won’t be enough to clinch United this season’s title.