Leicester City vs. Manchester United: 2016 FA Community Shield Score, Reaction

Zlatan Ibrahimovic etched his name in Manchester United folklore on Sunday after his 83rd-minute header snatched a 2-1 win over Leicester City in the Community Shield clash at Wembley Stadium.

Jesse Lingard's spectacular solo finish put United 1-0 ahead at half-time, but Marouane Fellaini gifted Jamie Vardy an equalising chance early in the second period, which the Englishman grasped with both hands.

Frank Augstein/Associated Press

Ibrahimovic scored just four minutes into his pre-season debut for the Red Devils, and Sunday's winning contribution provided further evidence to his impact at Old Trafford.  

The 34-year-old arrived at his new club from free agency and is already proving himself to be well worth the handsome wages he's being paid at United:

United and Leicester endured a healthy back-and-forth during the opening exchanges, but the Red Devils perhaps glanced an edge in terms of time spent on the ball. 

Nevertheless, it was Shinji Okazaki who came closest to opening the scoring after 20 minutes, rocking the crossbar with his header from a corner.

Commentator Neville Foulger was in awe of the Japanese star:

On the half-hour mark, Lingard picked the ball up just inside the Foxes' half and drove past five Leicester defenders before side-footing his chipped attempt over Kasper Schmeichel and inside his right post.

Manager Claudio Ranieri's side could hardly have stopped the United youngster from firing Jose Mourinho's men ahead, via BT Sport Football:

Just as the match started, the two outfits went in at the interval sharing an even balance in possession, but it was United who held a substantial advantage on the scoreboard.

In terms of which player was impressing the most, one need look no further than the scorer himself to see who stood out in an attacking sense, per WhoScored.com:

One might have backed United to build on their lead in the second period, but Leicester struck quickest after the restart, thanks in large part to a smart run forward from half-time substitute Ahmed Musa. 

The speedster fired into United's half before Fellaini collected the ball and attempted a pass back to goalkeeper David De Gea; however, Vardy was quickest to the loose ball and sent home the equaliser:

Wembley was treated to a terrific tug of war over the next 30 minutes/ United captain Wayne Rooney came closest to scoring next following a smart interchange between Anthony Martial and Fellaini on the left flank.

Mourinho brought on the likes of Juan Mata, Ander Herrera and Marcus Rashford inside the 70-minute mark, with Rashford in particular hoping to inject some much-needed pace in attack.

Leicester stood firm against the assault mounted by their top-flight rivals, with the Reds operating largely through bouts of possession, while the Foxes regularly looked more threatening on the counter-attack.

United's ongoing pressure finally yielded dividends with just over five minutes remaining, as Ibrahimovic climbed over Leicester captain Wes Morgan to nudge his header in off Schmeichel's far post:

ESPN FC's Iain Macintosh took note of just how difficult it has proved to be for the average player to get one over Morgan in recent times—although Ibrahimovic is again proving himself to be anything but:

De Gea was eager to keep hold of the ball at any given opportunity in a bid to run down the clock for the remaining minutes, and Mourinho's first title win as United boss came by the slim margin many might have expected.

Leicester had a penalty shout in the closing seconds, when a long throw sent the ball ricocheting inside the Red Devils' box, but the official waved away any appeal and blew up for full time.

With less than a week now remaining until the 2016-17 Premier League season gets underway, United could hardly have hoped for a better result than to down its reigning champions.

Leicester, meanwhile, will take this as a disappointing result given the efforts they've gone to maintaining their squad this summer. But United's new-look side ultimately came up with the goods in London.

Post-Match Reaction

Tim Ireland/Associated Press

After netting his first competitive match-winner for United, Ibrahimovic told BT Sport of his elation at guiding the club to title victory, and his team will hope there's more of that to come (h/t BBC Sport):

"

It feels good. The first official game, we play for a trophy and we win. This is my 31st trophy. I'm super happy. Hopefully I can win much more than this.

It was a difficult game. We played against a good team. They were very strong. Something big is going on with our team. We begin with a trophy. 

I feel very good. The team is fantastic. Good team-mates, good spirit. The coach does everything to win. It is probably the biggest club I played in. The only one I can compare it to is Milan.

"

Those words came from someone very new to the squad, still acclimating to the climate in Manchester, whereas the other goalscorer, Lingard, is an established figure these days.

Lingard's post-match comments related more to the influence of the new manager, whose tactics certainly allowed him to flourish at Wembley: "[New boss Jose Mourinho] has given the front four a lot more licence to change positions. He lets you play free."