Manchester United have started their 2016-17 season on a high note, winning their first piece of silverware under new manager José Mourinho. Despite the fact that most supporters don’t get overly excited about this match, there are important things to take away from the win.

What Manchester United Can Take From The Community Shield

Positives To Take Away

The first positive to take away from win over Leicester City was the impressive play of Eric Bailly. The young central defender looked comfortable, for the most part, on the back line for the Red Devils. He looked strong, quick, and his defensive awareness was top-notch, all three are important keys to success in the Premier League. With his high-pace and aggressive style, he could make for a perfect partner alongside Chris Smalling for the 2016-17 season.

Another positive to take was the fashion in which the club played their football under the new manager. Mourinho opted to stick with his tested, and proven, 4-2-3-1 formation. He stuck Marouane Fellaini and Michael Carrick into the defensive midfield positions, and this seemed to work out quite well for the Red Devils. And, despite one moment of idiocy from Fellaini, they helped control the tempo of the match.

Along with lining up the team in an almost impeccable formation, the tactics showed through and helped secure the win over the champions. United did what they did much of last season, and controlled a fair amount of possession during the match, but this time with a bit of potency.

Something United lacked last season, during long periods of dominating possession, was creating real chances at scoring. They had nine shots in total on the day, with six of them being on target, and two of them tickling the back of the twine. This shouldn’t be a one-off in a “warm-up” match.

Negatives

The first main problem that became even more apparent during this match is the form of club captain, Wayne Rooney. Rooney was deployed in a role sitting in behind Zlatan, where he was tasked with holding up the ball and creating opportunities for the club’s new forward.

Despite playing much of the match, he didn’t look to be entirely in form or on the same wavelength as the other attacking players. There were multiple occasions where he lost the ball too easily, resulting in missed chances for United to knock in more goals than they did. Many will be hoping he can escape this slump and, if he can’t, possibly even taking a pay cut sometime in the near future.

The other negative is the publicity surrounding the substitution of Juan Mata. Mata came on as a second half substitute in the 63rd minute for injured Jesse Lingard, and he was only able to play for a total of 29 minutes. He was substituted for Henrikh Mkhitaryan in stoppage time, and it didn’t look to involve any sort of injury. This series of events today begs the question, is Mata done at Old Trafford?

Unsung Heroes Of The Day

Antonio Valencia

Valencia looked more than comfortable at right-back for the Red Devils. He was seen making his trademark streaking runs down the right wing and flying past defenders in the process with ease. A serious attacking option from the right-back position has been something United have been in serious need of in the last few seasons, and their cure could come in the form of the Ecuadorian.

Luke Shaw

Luke Shaw is finally starting to look like his old self, the one United signed for a massive fee from Southampton. He has looked to have recovered from the broken leg in fantastic fashion. Much like Valencia, Shaw was seen making multiple runs down the left wing, and contributed a good deal to moving the ball into the offensive third for United. One can only hope that he stays healthy and continues this form into, and throughout, the 2016-17 Premier League season. Because, if he does, United will be a serious title contender come the final stretch of the season.

What To Think Of It All

Despite this being seen as a half step between the pre-season and the Premier League campaign, it’s shown some massively important points to focus on moving forward. With the likely signing of midfielder Paul Pogba soon to be confirmed, this could make for a prosperous season for an ailing giant. If Mourinho is able to get the best out of Rooney, Valencia, and Shaw, look for the red side of Manchester to make a serious challenge for the Premier League title come the end of the season.

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