MANCHESTER, England -- There's nothing like a late winner from a new striker to fuel early-season optimism, and Joshua Zirkzee delivered it for Manchester United and manager Erik ten Hag.
Just when it looked like the Red Devils' campaign would get off to a frustrating start after a series of missed chances, the £36.5 million summer signing from Bologna came off the bench and clinched a 1-0 win over Fulham on Friday with an 87th-minute debut goal. Zirkzee's celebration was relatively composed given what he'd just done, while Ten Hag's reaction -- both fists clenched above his head on the touchline -- was a mixture of joy and relief.
Following a dour 2023-24, this was the United manager's first chance to show everyone that things will be different this season, which would have been a difficult argument to make after an opening day draw at home. Instead, Ten Hag got the opportunity to talk about the positives, and most of that was down to Zirkzee.
"It is very good for a striker to come in and score his first goal," Ten Hag said after the match. "The win is very pleasing. To start the season with a win is always important. We are not ready as a squad, as a team, many players are not up to full fitness. We only had 10 days with this team training together.
"I expect more from this team, but we have a foundation we can build on. The performance is good, over 90 minutes of course there is room for improvement, but I think the overall performance and execution of the game plan was very good."
Zirkzee's intervention was the decisive moment in the game, but it won't paper over all the issues. With the Netherlands international on the bench for the best part of an hour, United played with Bruno Fernandes as the No. 9, and chance after chance came and went.
Twice in the first half Fernandes got a sight of the Fulham goal and twice Bernd Leno made a save. United's desperation to score resulted in Harry Maguire being booked for simulation as he looked for a penalty.
Early in the second half, Marcus Rashford forced the ball through to Mason Mount, but again Leno blocked the shot. United were the joint-lowest scorers in the Premier League's top 10 last season, and for the majority of the game on Friday, it looked like Ten Hag's team would draw another blank.
It's a problem that has crept into the new campaign.
In their final U.S. tour game against Liverpool, United could have been two goals up before they conceded three times and lost 3-0. At Wembley in the Community Shield, Rashford had two chances to score that, had he done so, would have removed the need for a penalty shootout to settle the game.
"I think one space we have to fill is to kill in the box," Ten Hag said. "We saw it in the friendlies and last week against City. We create enough chances to not have to wait for a late winner. We have to be more composed and kill. Maybe it's the start of the season, players have to come into full speed. We have enough players with scoring abilities."
Rasmus Hojlund can't come back soon enough from his 10-week layoff because of a hamstring injury picked up in America. The difference this year is that Ten Hag has a backup.
Zirkzee, scorer of 11 goals in Serie A last season, came on in the 61st minute and immediately United had a focal point to their attack.
When the goal finally came, Zirkzee dropped into midfield, picked up the ball and rolled it out wide to Casemiro. Alejandro Garnacho crossed from the right and Zirkzee was in the right place to attack the ball and poke it across Leno and into the goal. It was one of only 12 touches, but that was all he needed to switch the mood inside Old Trafford.
It was a striker's goal. One that new assistant manager Ruud van Nistelrooy, scorer of 150 United goals, would have been proud of himself. It's been 23 years since Van Nistelrooy scored twice against Fulham at Old Trafford on his Premier League debut.
There were other positives.
Despite some nervous moments, including Lisandro Martínez clearing the ball from under his own crossbar with the score at 0-0, it was a first clean sheet at home since March. New signing Noussair Mazraoui impressed at right-back as well.
It was Zirkzee, though, who stole the show.
"It was very important to get the first goal as a striker," Ten Hag said. "For him it is very pleasing because strikers have to score. That is the first ability you have to show when you come as a striker to a new club.
"He has some attributes we didn't have and straight away he showed it. He is very good in his linking up combinations but he has to arrive in the box to score goals."
United won their first game of last season 1-0, too, before giving an early warning of what was to come by losing four of their next five. The fresh start at Old Trafford, with a new co-owner in Sir Jim Ratcliffe, new executives in Dan Ashworth and Omar Berrada and new players like Zirkzee, will feed into the optimism around the club, but Ten Hag knows better than anyone that only positive results will keep it going.
Zirkzee arrived just in time to deliver the first one.