Manchester United 1-0 Inter Milan: Mason Greenwood strikes AGAIN to continue Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's hot streak on Reds' pre-season tour

• e-mail

For the best part of 80 minutes here in the National Stadium in Singapore, it looked as though the deadlock between Manchester United and Inter Milan over Romelu Lukaku's proposed transfer to Italy had extended to the pitch.

There was nothing to separate the two sides in the humidity even though United had played the better football and created the better chances in a competitive International Champions Cup clash.

Then for the second game in a row teenage striker Mason Greenwood demonstrated that losing Lukaku might not be such a bad thing after all if it gives him an opportunity to break into the first-team as he scored a fantastic winning goal. 

Mason Greenwood (centre) scored the winning goal against Inter Milan on Saturday afternoon

Greenwood (far left) celebrates with his United team-mates after breaking the deadlock

 The 17-year-old smartly finished in the second half to give United the win in Singapore

It was a confident and assured finish from Greenwood, who had only been on the pitch for 13 minutes – far better than his close-range effort against Leeds United in Perth in midweek and one that belied his 17 years. This was Inter Milan, and a very stubborn Inter side at that.

There was still plenty left to do in the 76th minute when goalkeeper Samir Handanovic palmed Ashley Young's free-kick to the edge of the box and the ball ran to Greenwood. 

The youngster twisted first right and then left before dispatching a clinical shot that flew past Handanovic and Milan Skriniar on the line.

No wonder Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says the boy has a chance of starting the season against Chelsea next month, by which time Lukaku is expected to be an Inter player despite United rejecting a £54m offer on Saturday.

The predominantly United support in Singapore absolutely loved it and so, you can imagine, will the rest of the club's supporters around the world.

Here is a genuinely exciting talent from the club's academy who has made a huge impact on this tour and will get another chance against Tottenham in Shanghai.

Solskjaer will be delighted with how his team have improved game by game on this tour. They showed great energy again, played positively, and pressed Inter well even though the final ball often let them down.

The United manager was able to pick David de Gea for the first time on tour and Luke Shaw also returned after missing the second game against Leeds with a slight knock.

Paul Pogba is put under pressure by Samuele Longo during Manchester United's narrow win

Inter Milan goalkeeper Samir Handanovic is forced to make a full-stretch save in the friendly

But the United keeper had very little to do throughout a first half in which United pinned Inter back inside their own half for long periods and looked increasingly dangerous.

The first effort arrived on 15 minutes when a cross from Dan James was headed away to Shaw on the edge of the box and he took one touch before sending a shot fizzing past the far post.

Anthony Martial then worked room for a shot but Handanovic was equal to his swerving effort, just about gathering it at the first attempt.

It took United more than half an hour to get behind the Italians' defence. Martial's clever ball released Shaw who raced to the byeline and cut the ball back for Marcus Rashford. However, Handanovic got the faintest of touches to divert the path of the ball and it ran through the England striker's legs in front of goal.

Solskjaer will have been very pleased with some of the purposeful football his players produced against their best opponents so far on tour. 

One move began with the back-four playing their way confidently out of trouble and no Inter player touched the ball again until Pogba was thwarted in front of goal half a minute later.

United goalkeeper David de Gea comes to punch the ball during an Inter Milan corner

Anthony Martial has his head in his hands after missing a chance to score against Inter

United sensed a breakthrough in the minutes before half-time when Martial played a clever one-two with Jesse Lingard and tried to dink the ball over Handanovic, who did just enough to divert the ball for a corner.

Pogba then picked out Rashford's run with a fantastic pass in behind the Inter defence but their keeper once again came to the rescue, reading the danger and racing out of his goal to clear.

The Serie A side rarely threatened but were gifted a clear chance in the 39th minute when Marcelo Brozovic sent over a cross from the left. De Gea came out to claim the ball but missed it and Danilo D'Ambrosio headed wide of an open goal.

Another United player who would have been disappointed with his first-half contribution was James. United's young new signing won't have faced this level of opposition many times in his career and too often he was guilty of taking the wrong option.

It came to a head midway through the half when the Wales winger failed to pick out Lingard's run into the box with a simple pass and moments later was left holding his head in his hands after blazing wide of the near post from a similar position.

Roberto Gagliardini (centre) is challenged by Eric Bailly (right) at the National Stadium

Inter Milan's Sebastiano Esposito goes through the back of Victor Lindelof in a tight first half

Having been flattened early on by Brozovic – who was later booked for a foul on Lingard – James limped away from a strong 50-50 tackle from Skriniar and finished the half face down in the turf following another equally uncompromising challenge from Dalbert.

Having made 11 changes at the interval in both United's opening games, Solskjaer waited until the 63rd minute to make wholesale changes this time, although the first had been forced on him several minutes earlier when Victor Lindelof picked up a knock and had to be replaced by Phil Jones.

United continued to press, however, and could have scored twice soon after the restart. Martial's run gave Lingard the chance to pick his spot from the edge of the box and finally beat Handanovic but D'Ambrosio was there to block the goalbound shot.

Nemanja Matic went even closer with a downward header from a corner shortly afterwards which again beat the keeper, but this time Inter were saved by the post.

It took one of the substitutes to make the breakthrough and once again Greenwood grabbed the headlines. He really is quite a talent.

United's summer signing Dan James found life tough against an experienced Inter side

Inter manager Antonio Conte looks unimpressed during his side's narrow defeat on Saturday