MANCHESTER.- Joshua Zirkzee debuted with the Manchester United coming on as a substitute to score in the 87th minute in his team’s 1-0 victory on Friday against Fulham in the first match of the season for the Premier League.
The Dutch striker pushed forward with his left foot to fire in a cross from substitute Alejandro Garnacho at Old Trafford.
Zirkzee, who joined from Bologna last month for a reported fee of $47 million, was one of three players United signed in the summer transfer window to make their debuts for the club. The other two were Noussair Mazraoui and Matthijs de Ligt.
“Winning here in my first home game and getting a goal, it couldn’t have been better,” Zirkzee said.
Zirkzee, Mazraoui and De Ligt arrived for a fee of 180 million dollars to the club, which has won 20 times in the league and has new owners who are looking to return the team to its glory years.
Vote of confidence
Erik ten Hag kept his job as manager despite leading United to an eighth-place finish last season. But this was a solid, if unspectacular, start to the campaign for his team.
With Zirkzee not at 100% and Rasmus Hojlund injured, Manchester United started the season without a nominal striker and it showed. Midfielders Bruno Fernandes and Mason Mount squandered the best chances of the game, which began to flank before Zirkzee’s late intervention.
Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno came to his team’s rescue, making two saves, first in a one-on-one duel with Fernandes and then with a save on Mount in the second half.
Leno had no chance against Zirkzee’s shot in front of the Stretford End, but Garnacho missed a clear chance to make it 2-0 when he fired in from outside the area into an open goal.
Mazraoui played 81 minutes at right-back before being replaced by De Ligt, three days after the pair joined from Bayern Munich. Zirkzee came on in the 61st minute.
