Manchester United playing in Mourinho style already as Paul Pogba shines

         

Manchester United sealed another typical Jose Mourinho win on the Portuguese's Old Trafford debut on Friday night, easing past Southampton 2-0. Like their 3-1 win at Bournemouth five days earlier, United showed an impressive level of organisation so early into the new regime, while producing enough danger at the other end to win comfortably.

Their fluency varied when facing an established defence, and that is another reflection of Mourinho, who values transitions above elaborate moves. United often tried to counter attack here, particularly after Zlatan Ibrahimovic's opener. The opposite was true of Southampton, who dominated possession and mustered slick moves that lacked the final pass.

Claude Puel used his 4-4-2 diamond system, which featured Dusan Tadic in a free playmaker role and winger-turned-striker Nathan Redmond partnering Shane Long. Still, their expansive style couldn't prevent Ibrahimovic from scoring a penalty early in the second half.

United were now even happier to lower the tempo and strike on the break, which helped debutant Paul Pogba grow into the game as Saints ceded space. Puel pushed up his full-backs in hope of a late goal, but United stayed strong and coasted to victory.

Solid United launch counters

Considering how little time Mourinho has spent at United, the identity of his team has become strikingly clear. They are evolving into a robust and functional unit, with steel in the centre (Pogba, Ibrahimovic, Marouane Fellaini) complemented by pace out wide (Anthony Martial, Antonio Valencia, Luke Shaw). They can sit deep for longer spells, then attack quickly. If the cohesion is poor, Ibrahimovic can always provide some magic.

To some extent, the latter happened here. United had spells of plodding possession in which Wayne Rooney came too deep and Ibrahimovic looked isolated. Though early exceptions included an acrobatic Ibrahimovic volley and a Pogba effort, they hadn't produced much by the time Ibrahimovic towered above Jose Fonte, with almost no run-up, to head in Rooney's cross.

That allowed Mourinho to close up shop. United conceded no corners, one shot on target, and needed to make just 14 tackles compared to Southampton's 41. Their busiest tackler was actually Ibrahimovic, who attempted three. Their transition-based game, which led to just 43 percent possession, can be seen in the chances created graphic, where the final passes tended to go forward into space. Southampton, who operated in tighter areas, relied more on lay-offs and cut-backs.