Joshua Zirkzee stepped off the bench to score the winner on his debut as Manchester United beat Fulham 1-0 in the opening game of the 2024/25 Premier League season on Friday night.
The Dutchman guided home Alejandro Garnacho’s cross with just three minutes of regulation time left on the clock. He had been introduced at the same time as the Argentine in the second half.
In what was a fairly dull encounter, both sides had opportunities to score. Bruno Fernandes squandered a cluster of chances and Fulham made a hash of a couple of counter-attacks.
But for the second season running, United found a way to win their Premier League opener by a single goal. It was just the start Erik ten Hag would have hoped for, even if their is room for improvement in terms of his side’s overall performance level.
