'He has to be there to kill' - Erik ten Hag explains how Man Utd are working on Joshua Zirkzee's game as striker's match-winning contribution against Fulham

Summer signing Zirkzee came off the bench to score an 87th-minute winner for United to earn them all three points in their Premier League season opener on Friday. After the match, Ten Hag spoke about the 23-year-old forward and explained how United are trying to improve his overall game.

He said on Zirkzee: "Yes [he gets involved in build-up] but scoring, for a striker, is important. He should be there, where he was, to finish, to kill. But yeah, he has more qualities, so he has to get the right balance. We have to work with him, I think that's one of the things I spoke with him about, that he has to be arriving in the box to get his finishes, but, of course, we want him to link up. Therefore, also, for that attribute, we bought him. And he has great qualities to make that link-up play and we have some great midfielders around him who can make combinations so we can take hold of the game."

United are hoping to improve on a dreadful 2023-24 Premier League season and got off to a good start this time out, albeit they weren't that convincing against the Cottagers. But if new signings such as Zirkzee can hit the ground running, that will ease the pressure on manager Ten Hag - who was nearly sacked earlier this year - and give the squad confidence going forward.

United's next game is away at Brighton next weekend, followed by a crunch clash with rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on September 1. Zirkzee will hope to get more game time after coming off the bench on the hour mark for the Red Devils against Fulham.