The 2016 Community Shield was 26 minutes old when the fleet-heeled Jamie Vardy attacked the Manchester United goal. Eric Bailly, United’s £26 million (Dh124.8m) close season signing from Villarreal, showed the England international the goal line, pushing him onto his weaker left foot. Vardy burst forward; Bailly matched him for pace before a superbly timed tackle saw him take possession off Leicester’s nine.
United’s No 3 was rewarded with a pat on the head by David de Gea, one of the Spanish speakers who is helping him settle at his new club.
Jesse Lingard’s opening goal will be replayed more frequently than anything Bailly did, but the defender had a major presence in a game which saw Jose Mourinho lift his first trophy as United manager.
Vardy’s best at running behind defenders, yet Bailly consistently bettered him by playing deeper before pouncing on him, the cheetah on the hapless gazelle.
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According to Manolo Marquez, the man who gave Bailly his professional debut for Espanyol’s B team, the Ivorian was late to football after being spotted in a trial match in the Ivory Coast at 16. Marquez, who compares Bailly to Real Madrid’s Sergio Ramos, helped him overcome homesickness, but said he’d never worked with a player so physically strong.
Marquez thinks he’s going to be a big star for United, but acknowledges that he’s still to refine elements of his game – chiefly consistency, timing when tackling and an ability to stay on his feet – before he can be considered an elite level defender.
That much was evident when Bailly hit two errant passes in the first 11 minutes. He also cleared a high ball straight to a Leicester player soon after, but United were the better side in the first period and Bailly was their best player.
The second half started and within three minutes, the defender who models his game on the legendary Nemanja Vidic made two blocks to stop Leicester attacks. Not for nothing did Manchester City also try to sign the man who cost Villarreal €5 million from Espanyol, before he chose Vidic’s former club United and – thanks to words of advice from Didier Drogba – an opportunity to develop under Mourinho.
Bailly wasn’t at fault when a poor back pass from Marouane Fellaini allowed Vardy to equalise after 52 minutes, thrilling the blue half of the 84,403 crowd. Bailly was too strong challenging Ahmed Musa as he conceded a 59th minute foul in a dangerous position outside of the area. He did the same to Vardy after 70 minutes, his mistimed tackle earning a first yellow card in England as the game moved towards penalties.
With Chris Smalling injured and fellow central defender Phil Jones not included in the 18-man squad, Bailly played alongside Daley Blind in a flat back four in a 4-2-3-1 formation, though full-backs Antonio Valencia and Luke Shaw pushed forward as United had more possession.
Ahead of two holding midfielders Fellaini and Michael Carrick, United’s attacking four comprised Wayne Rooney, Lingard, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Anthony Martial who were interchangeable. Debutant Ibrahimovic, 35, had a quiet debut on a sunny London afternoon, before he scored the winning goal, expertly heading in Antonio Valencia’s 83rd minute cross after rising above Wes Morgan.
United’s pre-season has been ineffective and disrupted, with a shambolictrip to China, but United’s work rate has clearly improved and Mourinho, who watched from the edge of his box in a smart grey suit, was rightly pleased.
Bailly, 22, was impressive and there’s little reason why he can’t start in United’s opening Premier league game at Bournemouth next Sunday.
United have signed two French speaking players called Eric before. One, Djemba Djemba, failed at Old Trafford. The other, Cantona, did not. Early impressions can mislead, but Bailly, who was man of the match, looks capable of being a success at United.
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