Pogba, Zlatan Reign Over Old Trafford

Two new signings at opposite ends of the career spectrum have given the Red Devils their belief back under Jose Mourinho

The merchandise sellers around Sir Alex Ferguson Way had new faces to stich into their scarves for the first Manchester United home match of the season. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Paul Pogba may be at the opposite ends of their respective career paths but both represent the new face of this famous old club.


United have had big signings before but they have their chests puffed out again now, employing as they are the most-expensive footballer in history and, arguably, the third-greatest forward on the planet. It has made for a sensational start to the season; the familiar relentlessness of a successful Jose Mourinho side is already in full flow.

Southampton won here last season and the season before that but the days of underdogs coming to Old Trafford and taking away wins away look long gone. Mourinho presides over one of the proudest home records in football management and that extends to this ground now.

Old Trafford feels again like the kind place where decent teams come to get only a chastening. United were dominant, at their regal best, with King Zlatan and Prince Paul reigning over all others.

This was, of course, Pogba's second debut for his first senior club. He would have preferred not to give the ball away with his very first touch and cause a Southampton breakaway but the longer the game went on the more comfortable the French midfielder looked.