It is fair to say that Erik ten Hag got off to a flying start in charge of Manchester United, winning his opening two pre-season matches having scored four goals in each. But the club's new manager will, without a doubt, assign greater value to the influence he is already holding over the players rather than fixating the results.
The third match of United's tour was back against Premier League opposition by way of Crystal Palace, albeit only 10 senior players actually travelled to Australia. United themselves fielded a similar side to that which started their opening two matches aside from three changes: Tyrell Malacia and Marcus Rashford replaced Luke Shaw and Anthony Elanga, whilst David de Gea returned in place of Tom Heaton after a minor injury.
And, from the outset, United impressed. Possession was held immaculately, allowing sustained pressure to be inflicted on Palace, who struggled to do much to disrupt their opposition's flow. The same attacking intent that has been present across the tour was evident, involving structured build-up phases and assured link-up passages.
It came as no surprise that United opened the scoring after only 17 minutes.
A ball was placed from the left side of the penalty area by Malacia, who showed vision and precision to pick out Diogo Dalot on the right. Dalot's chest control was excellent, allowing him to pick out Anthony Martial with an in-swinging delivery to the back post with his weaker left foot. Martial was able to take the ball under his spell before finishing with potency for his third goal in three matches.
Martial was sharp again and showed proficiency in his movement to finish, but the full-backs similarly caught the eye for their part in the lead-up to the goal. There were definite further signs as to the impetus that Ten Hag is placing upon his full-backs. Both Dalot and Malacia made an impression in wide areas whilst also displaying their capabilities in inverted roles; the former has shown that he possesses the attributes to invert and it has taken him little time to adapt, whilst the latter is already able to naturally operate in the role due to experience with Feyenoord.
Dalot, again, displayed his right-side connection with Jadon Sancho with a substantial contribution to proceedings. Meanwhile, Malacia, in his first start, displayed ample energy in addition to his aggressive, front-footed intent and technical assurance.
Such high intensity and tempo was, once more, displayed by the entire team. Fred was another player who particularly proved his suitability to this system given his energetic nature, using his industry to great effect whilst also getting involved in possession. There remain technical refinements for Fred to undergo, but there are signs that he could be a useful asset doing the 'dirty work' in midfield, especially if United sign Frenkie de Jong for the holding role.
The attack, in the meantime, continually caused a whole plethora of issues for the Palace defence via interchanges and interplay between the front three, with Bruno Fernandes contrubuting too. There was a repeated sense that the entire side - not just the attack - were on the same wavelength; cohesion was apparent throughout, with a clear connection between the defence, midfield and attack.
Half-time didn't bring the wholesale changes as has been the case previously, with the same side that started tasked with ramping up their preparations by playing an hour for the first time in pre-season. "Fitness has to be built and this is a good opportunity to do that," Ten Hag claimed before the match.
Scott McTominay was the only exception - withdrawn with Donny van de Beek introduced in a slightly different role to that against Liverpool and Melbourne Victory.
But Van de Beek still found himself inside the box to contribute at the climax of a really well-worked second United goal early after the break. It was a move commenced by De Gea, who showed his improved distribution to pick out Fernandes. From deep, Fernandes played a long ball forward towards Martial, who produced a deft first touch before playing a one-two with Sancho. Re-receiving the ball after a run into the box, Martial looked to try and round the goalkeeper before, instead, offloading to Van de Beek, who squared for Rashford to tap into an open net.
Ten Hag had, this week, spoken about his view that Van de Beek's "best capability is in the box of the opponent". No doubt, Van de Beek showed his nous to ultimately assist Rashford having opted against snatching a shot, instead cutting the ball across. This composure of thought inside the area is a valuable asset that Van de Beek possesses.
As well as the individual moments in the build-up to the goal, the efficiency of the manoeuvre was testament to the structural discipline instilled by Ten Hag. Each of the players clearly knew their roles, which led to a fluid attack and ultimately a goal.
Sancho soon ensured that each of the front three were on the scoresheet courtesy of a move engineered by each of the trio. Each displayed a will to get hold of the ball, stemming from Rashford receiving Fred's pass from deep and producing a spin-turn into space. Rashford found Martial, who played a first-time ball into Sancho's path to add an assist to his earlier goal and central involvement to the second United goal.
After a deceiving feint following a well-timed run, Sancho finished in a classy order. And it was a goal that put emphasis on the connection between the trio and the value of such a dynamic front line.
Things did plateau slightly as changes were made around the 65-minute mark. The overall rhythm of the game was disrupted, and United ended up conceding avoidably from a corner; Joel Ward was left unchallenged, with De Gea making a hash of his attempted save against the Palace defender's free header. It was the sort of goal that had to be stopped at source - and it probably would have been if Harry Maguire, who proved a domineering figure at right centre-back in Raphael Varane's continued absence, was still on the pitch.
A sending off for young Will Fish, who was drafted into the tour squad late as Axel Tuanzebe pulled out due to personal issues, left the game to finish on a slightly sour note. It wasn't as malicious as some challenges from Palace players, namely Jordan Ayew, that sparked the occasional altercation, but he seemingly instinctively fouled the last man. Pre-season or not, it was a stonewall red card.
Though United's first-choice team certainly left plenty less to be desired. Late mishaps from a much-rotated outfit only left a mere tinge on an otherwise massively impressive showing. It may be 'only pre-season', but, irrespective of results (which so happen to be positive), there are hugely encouraging signs that Ten Hag's philosophy is already largely being instilled.
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