69′ Harrison is withdrawn for the visitors and is replaced by Costa in the final third.
N. Matić
S. McTominay
69′ Matic enters the action to replace McTominay for the home side in the middle of the park.
P. Pogba
Assist
68′ Pogba collects his fourth assist of the game with a precise offload inside. He makes a run out to the left and spots the run of Fred. The Frenchman picks out his team-mate, who completes the finish.
68′ GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!! IT’S FIVE!!!!!!!!! FRED GETS ON THE SCORESHEET!! United are in dreamland here and are sending out a statement to the Premier League. Fred whips a low strike past Meslier from close range after latching onto Pogba’s cutback. The Brazilian makes a good late run into the box before dispatching his effort into the net. Pogba now has four assists.
66′ United are in their comfort zone now and can just play within themselves. It has been a dominant second half outside of the Leeds goal from the Red Devils.
64′ Leeds have unravelled since they scored the equaliser. Bielsa will be furious with his side’s defensive performance. They’ve been cut open with ease in the second half.
Raphinha
Yellow Card
62′ Raphinha lunges in on Shaw and goes into the book for his reckless challenge.
V. Lindelöf
Assist
60′ Lindelof takes his time and delivers a simple ball behind the Leeds defence from his own half that Fernandes collects and finishes.
Bruno Fernandes
Goal
60′ GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!! FERNANDES COMPLETES HIS HAT-TRICK!!!!!! 4-1!!!!! The Portuguese notches his third of the game as Leeds fall apart at the back. A simple ball over the top from Lindelof releases Fernandes behind the defence as he gets the wrong side of Cooper. He finishes in style with a precise strike over the top of Meslier into the back of the net. What a response from United.
L. Cooper
Yellow Card
59′ Cooper fouls Greenwood with a loose challenge and goes into the book.
59′ Pogba is the eighth Manchester United player to assist three goals in a single Premier League game, and first since Antonio Valencia against Wolves in December 2011.
58′ Klich almost threads the needle to release Bamford in the box, but a desperate slide from Maguire breaks up the attack.
56′ What a start to the second half. Both teams have come out firing, but it is the Red Devils who are now in complete command of the contest.
P. Pogba
Assist
54′ Pogba continues to torment the Leeds defence as he releases Fernandes for his second of the game. Pogba now has three assists.
Bruno Fernandes
Goal
54′ GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!! UNITED SCORE AGAIN!!!! FERNANDES NOTCHES HIS SECOND!!!! 3-1!!!! Leeds fall apart at the back as Fernandes finds space in the box. He checks back as Meslier commits himself and opts for the strike on his left foot. It travels away from the Leeds keeper and crosses the line despite the best effort of Ayling. The referee gets an alert on his watch to confirm the goal.
P. Pogba
Assist
52′ Pogba takes possession and sends a precise ball for the run of Greenwood down the left flank. The forward collects and continues his run, firing past Meslier from the angle.
M. Greenwood
Goal
52′ GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!! GREENWOOD RESTORES UNITED’S LEAD!!!!!! 2-1!!!!! Leeds were not level for long as the home side have re-established their advantage in the contest. Pogba threads the needle to release Greenwood down the left flank. There is still work to do, but he beats Struijk for pace and surges into the left-inside channel. He fires his effort away from Meslier and into the bottom-right corner with precision.
50′ United will be disappointed to concede so soon after the restart and now need to regain their composure.
S. Dallas
Assist
48′ Dallas feeds the run of Ayling on the right flank, who does the rest with a sublime effort from distance.
L. Ayling
Goal
48′ WHAT A GOAL!!!! AYLING SCORES A STUNNER!!! 1-1!!! Leeds are back in the game through a super strike from Ayling. He collects the ball 25 yards from goal and lines up a blast. It rockets towards the top-left corner away from the hand of De Gea and into the back of the net. An incredible effort from the full-back that draws his side level.
46′ We’re back under way at Old Trafford.
Junior Firpo
Rodrigo
46′ Rodrigo is withdrawn at the break for the visitors and is replaced by Firpo, who makes his Leeds debut.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer can afford to be pleased with his side’s performance, although Leeds have been threatening on occasions. United will not feel entirely comfortable unless they can secure a second goal to take the game away from the Whites.
Bruno Fernandes’ strike has handed Manchester United a 1-0 lead over Leeds United at the break in their Premier League clash at Old Trafford. The Portuguese broke the deadlock after being played through the visitors’ defence by Paul Pogba. His finish was good enough to beat Illan Meslier, and at the moment it separates the two sides ahead of a crucial 45 minutes.
45′ + 1′ HALF-TIME: MANCHESTER UNITED 1-0 LEEDS UNITED
45′ There will be one minute of added time.
45′ United probe on the edge of the box as Pogba feeds James. He cuts inside on his right foot, but can only send a tame effort at Meslier.
42′ McTominay attacks a deep cross from Fernandes to the back post from a United corner, but he can only nod his effort down and wide amid pressure from a number of Leeds defenders.
40′ Since his competition debut in February 2020, Fernandes has been directly involved in 46 Premier League goals (27 goals, 19 assists), two more than any other player in this time
39′ Fred loses possession for the hosts and it allows Klich to drive forward. Bamford makes a good run, but the Pole overhits his pass out for a goal-kick.
36′ Shaw continues to be a threat for the hosts. He makes another great run forward and this time supplies James. The Welshman gets the ball out of his feet before skewing his effort wide of the target.
34′ Leeds attack to hit back as Bamford floats a cross-field pass towards Raphinha. He takes a touch before firing a left-footed effort towards goal, only to see it charged down by Maguire.
33′ WIDE! Shaw combines with Fernandes down the left flank and he goes for goal from a tight angle, only to smash his attempt into the side-netting.
P. Pogba
Assist
30′ Pogba collects McTominay’s pass before laying a perfect offload through the Leeds defence for Fernandes to collect and score.
Bruno Fernandes
Goal
30′ GOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!! FERNANDES BREAKS THE DEADLOCK!!!!! 1-0 UNITED!!!! The home side take the lead through the Portuguese. Meslier sends a poor kick out from the back that arrives back in the Leeds half at a rapid pace. McTominay feeds Pogba, who releases the run of Fernandes behind Struijk. The midfielder takes a touch before hammering an effort towards goal that Meslier gets a hand to, but cannot keep from crossing the line. The Red Devils have the lead.
30′ Fernandes races forward and shifts to his right. He angles a perfect low ball towards the run of Greenwood in the box, but the forward just cannot connect on the slide.
29′ Fernandes takes possession and looks up. He spots the run of James, but just overhits his throughball for his team-mate.
27′ Pogba skips past one challenge and has space in the Leeds half. However, he connects with a poor strike that trickles into Meslier’s hands.
26′ CHANCE! Raphinha whips the ball into the box with pace towards the run of Rodrigo. The Spaniard fails to connect, but Bamford stretches to angle a header towards goal that travels wide of the left post.
25′ Harrison gets caught on the ankle by Fred and the referee awards the Whites a free-kick in a useful position in the final third.
24′ Pogba and Fernandes almost combine to great effect on the edge of the Leeds box. Koch makes a vital interception to prevent the Portuguese from connecting with his team-mates’ headed lay-off.
22′ Raphinha tries to beat the challenge of Maguire down the right flank, but the United defender holds firm and concedes only a corner.
20′ James breaks into the right-inside channel and forces a low ball across the face of goal, but Cooper is in the right place to intercept and clear for the visitors.
19′ Maguire takes a chance as he takes his time over a backpass. He offloads to De Gea just before Bamford arrives to close him down.
17′ CHANCE! De Gea gets down smartly to repel an effort from Klich. The midfielder collects an offload from Harrison and takes a touch past McTominay. He curls a strike on his right foot towards the bottom-right corner. However, the Spaniard is alert and pushes it behind.
16′ SAVE! Harrison latches on to a loose clearance from the hosts and has a strike on the half-volley that De Gea has to backpedal then claim on the line.
15′ Raphinha has space to stretch his legs on the right flank and he angles a dangerous low ball into the box that Lindelof has to stab behind.
12′ CHANCE! Greenwood surges through the Leeds midfield and has space to find Pogba through on goal. The Frenchman only needs to beat Meslier, but he slots his left-footed strike wide of the left post. A poor miss from the United man.
11′ Maguire rises to connect with a corner from the left flank from Shaw, but he can only help his effort wide of the target.
9′ Klich collects an offload from Rodrigo on the edge of the box, but he sees his effort charged down before it can threaten.
8′ Rodrigo releases Klich into the right-inside channel and he clips a cross towards the near post. McTominay tracks back and has to clear behind ahead of the lurking presence of Bamford.
6′ Greenwood twists and turns to open up space for a strike at goal, but he sends a fairly tame effort into the hands of Meslier from 25 yards.
4′ Shaw hangs a cross into a middle, but Meslier comes off his line to ease the pressure on his defence with a fantastic claim.
3′ United keep the pressure on after Meslier punches the first corner away. The home side win a second set-piece down the left flank.
2′ Fernandes plays McTominay into space in the right-inside channel. He goes for the strike at goal, only to see his effort diverted behind by Cooper on the slide.
1′ We’re under way at Old Trafford.
Manchester United and Leeds United are set to face in their opening top-flight league matches of the season for the first time since 1970-71, with Leeds winning 1-0 at Old Trafford with a goal from Mick Jones ahead of finishing runners-up in the league that season.
Leeds also resist the opportunity to hand a debut from the off to Firpo, who starts on the bench. The Whites are without Diego Llorente, which sees Cooper, Struijk and Koch start in the backline. Phillips is not thrown straight back in after his summer exploits with England at the Euros. Dallas and Klich start in the middle of the park with Raphinha and Ayling on the flanks. Rodrigo, Harrison and Bamford lead the line this afternoon.
Solskjaer opts against starting Sancho from the off, while the deal for Varane has just been finalised leaving the Frenchman to wait. United start with a familiar look, although Edinson Cavani is missing due to personal reasons and Marcus Rashford is sidelined with a shoulder injury. Greenwood spearheads the attack, supported by Fernandes, Pogba and James. De Gea starts between the posts while Dean Henderson is out after testing positive for Covid-19 along with Jesse Lingard.
LEEDS UNITED SUBS: Junior Firpo, Adam Forshaw, Tyler Roberts, Kristoffer Klaesson, Helder Costa, Kalvin Phillips, Crysencio Summerville, Sam Greenwood, Jamie Shackleton.
LEEDS UNITED (3-4-3): Illan Meslier; Pascal Struijk, Robin Koch, Liam Cooper; Luke Ayling, Stuart Dallas, Mateusz Klich, Raphinha; Rodrigo Moreno, Jack Harrison, Patrick Bamford.
MANCHESTER UNITED SUBS: Juan Mata, Anthony Martial, Andreas Pereira, Diogo Dalot, Tom Heaton, Jadon Sancho, Nemanja Matic, Brandon Williams, Donny van de Beek.
MANCHESTER UNITED (4-2-3-1): David de Gea; Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Luke Shaw; Scott McTominay, Fred; Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes, Daniel James; Mason Greenwood.
Leeds United were extremely impressive in their return to the Premier League last term. After 17 seasons out of the top flight, the Whites made a lot of noise in their comeback by finishing ninth in the table. Marcelo Bielsa’s team did not disappoint and even ended their season on a high note reeling off four-straight wins. Bielsa and the club’s hierarchy will be determined to build on their success. They completed a permanent move for Jack Harrison and signed Junior Firpo, but there is still work to be done to take the next step this term.
Manchester United kick off the campaign aiming to end their drought without the Premier League crown. It has been eight years since the Red Devils were last triumphant, and although they finished second last term, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his men were well off the pace of Manchester City. The Norwegian has bolstered his ranks with the signings of Jadon Sancho and Raphael Varane, and he will be hopeful that the new blood and a fast start will close the gap to their rivals at the top.
Good afternoon and welcome to the live commentary of the Premier League clash between Manchester United and Leeds United at Old Trafford.
Hélder Costa
J. Harrison