1. Can Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic play with each other?
The arrival of Zlatan Ibrahimovic to Old Trafford this summer has guaranteed United goals, his record doesn’t suggest otherwise.
The former Sweden captain may go missing for large periods of games this season, like he did today, but you can be assured that he will be in the right place at the right time to get his name on the score-sheet in plenty of matches throughout the season.
Although Ibrahimvoic has the goalscoring instinct, he has an increasing habit of going deeper and deeper in search of the ball, especially when cuts an isolated and frustrated figure.
Rooney though, who Mourinho has revealed will play behind the main striker, not in midfield this year, may not he the perfect partner for the former PSG striker. The England captian who turns 31 in October, no longer possess the pace or stamina to counteract Ibrahimovic’s deficiencies.
With Henrikh Mkhitaryan remaining on the bench for most of the game, the Armenian must feel he is the man to get the most out of Ibrahimvoic, and indeed the rest of the team. His 15 league assists last season, the most in the Bundesliga, shows that he could be right.
2. Is there room for van Gaal favourites in Mourinho’s United?
After his first official game in charge, we are no closer to knowing what a Jose Mourinho Manchester United team will look like, but as history shows, it probably won’t be until the start of next season that he really makes his mark at the club.
Antonio Valenica, Daley Blind, Marcus Rojo, Marouane Fellaini, Jesse Lingard and Juan Mata all featured at Wembley this afternoon, but how many of those six players will be around this time next season?
Valencia excelled at right-back today, but he has shown his limitations and is a liability defensively, while Blind doesn’t possess the physical attributes Mourinho likes in a defender.
Rojo has never settled in England, Fellaini was culpable for Leicester’s equaliser and Mata was sacrificed late on for tactical reasons, despite the Spaniard himself coming on as a substitute in the second-half.
Lingard may be the only one to still be around at Old Trafford next season, even if question marks remain over the 23-year-old’s overall quality at the very highest level.
3. Will Leicester be able to have the same success replicating the same tactics?
It’s never wise to make an assessment of a team after their first competitive game of the season, but there was nothing to suggest that the Leicester City Tinkerman has any plans to change last season’s winning formula.
The Premier League champions were prepared to sit back and soak up the pressure at the home of English football toady, much like they did last season that proved so successful. Losing N’Golo Kanté will come as a big blow to the way they play, although new signing Nampalys Mendy could prove to be an able deputy.
However, it looks as it will be essential the Foxes hold on to the quick-footed Riyad Mahrez as the transfer market shows that these type of players are not freely available.
Once the season kicks into gear, Claudio Ranieri’s side will see the games come thick and fast, as they embark on their maiden Champions League campaign. They may not be fresh enough to work harder, run faster and prepare better than their opposition this season.
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