Let’s start with the positives. Manchester United bagged another clean sheet, and the back four deserve credit for dealing so comfortably with Villa’s aerial threat. They are top of the table, and winning ugly is no bad habit to pick up at the start of the season.

Aston Villa’s team of new recruits ran out of fitness and ideas after an energetic opening spell, and the result could have been more emphatic. Loose passing, wasteful finishing and a particularly bad night for Wayne Rooney kept the hosts in the game, and on another evening they would have been punished.

But this wasn’t another evening – this was Friday night, and we were treated to an attritional win by the pre-match favourites. Still, it beats going out, eh? Thanks for joining me, and for all your emails and tweets. Goodnight.

92 mins: Villa have a goal kick, and one more chance to hoof the ball into the fabled mixer. United break, and Schweinsteiger finds Rooney, who attempts to nod the ball down and work a shooting angle, and ends up conceding a throw in.

91 mins: United playing keep ball deep in the Villa half. Don’t they know this is Friday Night Football?

89 mins: Rooney gives away the ball twice in quick succession to round off his evening’s work. Gueye is booked for a two-footed tackle on Schweinsteiger. There will be three added minutes.

88 mins: Another uninspiring, but efficient 1-0 win for United? Villa have a couple more minutes, plus added time, to spoil their party. Gestede holds the ball and tries to find Ayew with a backheel, but it never looked like coming off.

87 mins: See 85 mins.

85 mins: Mata and Schneiderlin knock the ball back and forth, before Mata slots it to Rooney... who’s offside.

83 mins: Darmian is booked for a foul against Amavi, delivered in stages. Once more, the delivery is a heatseeker into Romero’s arms. This could be a significant ten minutes in Louis van Gaal’s big rebuilding project.

81 mins: Villa nab a cheap corner, and Richards climbs highest to nod back across goal, but nobody’s ready for it and United clear. Depay takes his leave, replaced by Ashley Young, who is booed heartily onto the field by the home fans.

78 mins: Ten minutes for Villa to build sufficient steam to get anything out of this game. It’s not looking good, but United might just hand them another opportunity or two. Carlos Sánchez is on in place of Veretout, who has faded from the game.

76 mins: Rooney gets involved! He collects a pass, spins and sets up Shaw, but the full-back’s attempted pull back is cut out by Westwood. Depay has a go from distance, and Guzan holds onto it at full stretch.

74 mins: The moment all of Villa Park had been waiting for, as Gestede climbs to meet Clarke’s long diagonal cross, but he can’t get on top of it. He’s just good at heading, he’s not a machine. Herrera is in the book for a clumsy foul on Gueye.

“I thought Wayne did a fine acting job as Fat Old Groundskeeper in Nike’s 2010 World Cup ad” offers Daniel Stauss.

72 mins: Juan Mata, quietly impressive all evening, picks the Villa defence apart with a raking through ball to Depay. He takes his time, opens his body and sidefoots the ball a foot wide of the far post. Nobody in the ground can quite believe that didn’t go in.

70 mins: Jordan Ayew continues his fiery Premier League baptism, as he hopefully falls over a trailing leg and is booked by Mike Dean for diving.

68 mins: Depay, presented with a free kick some thirty yards out, slightly left of goal, attempts to Ronaldo it, and doesn’t succeed. The substitutions have certainly helped United, with the game returning to its first half form.

66 mins: Clownish stuff from Amavi, who allows Schneiderlin to wrestle the ball off him from an errant Darmian pass. Herrera whips in a right-sided cross, and Bacuna has to rise above Rooney to clear.

Nice things about Wayne Rooney update: “he’s got a full head of hair now” offers Joe Cooter, while Agrim Singh says “his debut was pretty sweet”.

64 mins: Westwood picks out Agbonlahor with a sublime cross-field ball, but with Gestede and Ayew waiting, his cross sails to Romero, who must be wondering what’s so tough about this Premier League lark.

62 mins: Amavi concedes a corner, hauling down Herrera as he tried to scamper freely down the right. It should have been a free kick. United can’t, and don’t, do anything with the corner.

60 mins: It looks like a change in personnel, rather than formation from van Gaal. Herrera is occupying the slot behind Rooney, who remains peripheral.

58 mins: Here comes Rudy Gestede, in place of Scott Sinclair. His first task is to help defend a United corner. In the end, it’s Ciaran Clark who thunks the ball away.

Two changes for the away team; Januzaj is replaced by Herrera, and Bastian Schweinsteiger replaces Michael Carrick. Does anyone have anything nice and non-libellous to say about Wayne Rooney?

56 mins: More sloppy work from United’s midfield gives Villa another opening, with Agbonlahor holding the ball up inside the D before flicking it wide, into the path of Gueye. It’s a tough angle for a shot, and he’s closed down before he can test Romero.

54 mins: Villa have their tails up, and win a corner, from which Agbonlahor has a free header, but fires it at Romero. Also of note in the build-up: Darmian forcing Richards to shake his hand, then immediately pawing at him again.

53 mins: Amavi, clearly furious at my previous criticism, wins a free kick on the left. Westwood lifts it in, but it drops over everyone and into Romero’s gloves. Wasted, in truth.

52 mins: Right on cue, Amavi breaks down the left and darts into the area. His cross is a beauty, swinging right across the six-yard box with Romero caught cold. A shame that no Villa player was within five yards of making contact.

50 mins: United look comfortable enough, stroking the ball between defence and midfield, although that could change at any moment.

Has anyone got anything nice to say about poor Wayne?

49 mins: He won’t be the last, but Amavi hasn’t looked as good against Manchester United as he did against Bournemouth. In space on the left, his through ball flies directly to Schneiderlin, drawing groans from the crowd.

“In the last ten minutes of the first half, I counted five moments when United gave the ball away in dangerous positions in their own half while completing what should have been routine passes. Would I be right to extrapolate 22.5 atrocious United giveaways over the entire first half?” asks Chad Noyes. It wasn’t quite that many, but it was too many.

47 mins: Mata gives the ball away cheaply in midfield, and Ayew rouses the Villa faithful, sleepy from half-time refreshments, with a pot shot from 25 yards that wasn’t as close as it looked.

“Is it me or is Rooney quite rubbish?” asks Peter Crosby. “Every time I see him play he has a terrible first touch, any pass he attempts beyond 5 yards goes astray, and his positioning always seems off.” Garry Bacon adds: “Is Rooney having second thoughts and trying to play his way out of United? Awful.”

Not a ringing endorsement of Wayne Rooney’s first half performance. It’ll be a concern to Van Gaal; his plan is for Rooney to fill the central striker’s role, with investments made elsewhere on the field.

So after 45 minutes, there’s little to suggest Aston Villa’s winless home run against Manchester United is going to end tonight. The hosts started brightly, but looked to have worn themselves out by the time Adnan Januzaj opened the scoring, keeping his head as Villa defenders slid around him to score via a deflection.

United might have made the task harder for their opponents, but failed to build on their growing dominance. In fact, they could, perhaps should, have conceded a penalty as Darmian threw hands all over Micah Richards. It’s far from over, particularly with human wrecking ball Rudy Gestede on the Villa bench, but it’s the visitors who (just about) deservedly lead.

45 mins: Veretout drifts to the right-hand side again, and for once has a few team-mates waiting in the box. His cross sails into Romero’s arms. One added minute.

42 mins: Jordan Ayew, another forward who has barely featured so far, hares after a Bacuna long ball, but is flagged offside. In other news, this new Premier League ball looks like a giant eyeball, and nobody seems that confident controlling it.

40 mins: Villa have got their collective breath back, and move the ball neatly upfield, with United happy to camp in their own half. Despite that, Januzaj finds himself in acres of space, but Rooney mishits the pass. It’s not been a particularly stellar half for him.

37 mins: Van Gaal won’t be best pleased to see the United defence faffing on the edge of their own area, conceding a corner into the bargain. Richards connects with it, but heads a mile over on account of a strange, angular gait. Replays show that Darmian had a hand around the defender’s neck, throwing Richards off balance. Further evidence that if you don’t go down in a heap, you simply don’t get penalties?

34 mins: After an uncomfortable opening spell, the visitors could put this game to bed by half-time. They are dominating possession, and Villa look absolutely shredded after just half an hour. Veretout has an opportunity but his hopeful long pass can’t pick out any of the hosts’ front three.

32 mins: Darmian has started where he left off last week, repeatedly fending off Sinclair with minimal fuss. It’s not going so well for Gueye, who after racing all over the field for half an hour, looks knackered, to be honest.

30 mins: Januzaj celebrates his goal by indulging in a petulant kicking contest with Veretout. Mike Dean lets them get on with it.

“On honeymoon, poolside in California, enjoying Friday night football at midday” says Owen Brown. California Poolside Football is a concept we can all get behind.

26 mins: Depay again looks dangerous, taking on that Villa back line alone at times, and making a decent fist of it. This time, he loses Bacuna chasing a long ball, but can’t keep his header, from a tight angle, on target.

24 mins: United have weathered the early storm (although really it was more of a shower), and Shaw and Darmian have stepped into the Villa half, bold as brass, waiting for overlaps that aren’t quite coming yet.

“I thought I didn’t mind Friday night football, until I logged in to fantasy football at about 7pm, only to find out I’ve missed the deadline for picking my team this week, and instead I’m stuck with last week’s picks. It’s thrown my whole schedule out,” says Matt Dony, one of Friday night football’s many overlooked victims.

22 mins: Gueye has been the standout performer for Villa, and almost tees up Ayew with a cute through ball – but Smalling does just enough to cut it out. Straight down the other end, Depay is played onside by Amavi, and sees a snap shot deflected away.

19 mins: Depay latches on to a lucky bounce, and Guzan has to be quick to race off his line and clear away, with the Dutch winger bearing down on him. Villa mistakes have presented their opponents with their two best (only) chances so far.

17 mins: A quiet spell, with United’s passing not clicking, and Villa’s enthusiasm not yet paired with a cutting edge. The atmosphere is the highlight thus far. Thumbs up for Friday nights!

15 mins: The Villa defence look ragged at best dealing with this, as Depay’s delivery zips beyond the lot of them. It looks set to land sweetly for Schneiderlin, floating around beyond the far post, but he misreads the bounce, and can only head well over the bar.

14 mins: A foray forward for United ends with Mata hooking a hopeful long pass towards Memphis that isn’t even close. Richards loses his head moments later, clattering Schneiderlin to give the visitors a free kick, close to the corner of the penalty area...

12 mins: The pattern continues, with Villa enjoying more possession without getting close to troubling the visiting defence.

10 mins: It’s the hosts who have shaded the early stages, spraying the ball around with confidence. United, to their credit, have been resolute in defence, with Villa’s attack less intimidating than their home support.

Indrajeet Khot in India tells me that it’s past midnight there, and India’s Independence Day has begun. It also means India are getting a revolutionary taste of (Very Early) Saturday Morning Football.

8 mins: The first real opening goes Villa’s way, as Sinclair finds Veretout on the right with a terrific threaded through ball. Veretout has to cross it first time, but dallies, and United force it clear.

6 mins: United try to advance, but Memphis tumbles meekly under a Jordan Veretout challenge, and Aston Villa break – but again, they’re a touch too eager, and Sinclair is offside, caught out by the visiting back four.

4 mins: It’s the home team who enjoy a spell of harmless possession, before Sinclair does brilliantly to keep a long Westwood pass in play on the left-hand touchline. Just as the move is starting to go somewhere, Bacuna mistimes his run and is caught offside.

2 mins: Two home debutants, Amavi and Gueye, combine before the left-back swings in a cross. Chris Smalling heads it clear. It really is very loud indeed.

1 min: United knock the ball around midfield, before Micah Richards draws a free kick with a charge out of defence. There are patches of empty seats, but both sets of fans are noisy as you like already.

Villa Park has filled up nicely as the teams file out, with United playing in white shirts and black shorts. Villa are in the usual claret and blue, currently concealed beneath some natty white warm-up tops. Kick off is but seconds away.

Dana Chavarria is for Friday night football, and with good cause:

American workers looking to clock off early have been harshly overlooked in this debate so far, if you ask me.

New signing Adama Traoré, who joined today from Barcelona, will be presented to the Villa Park crowd before the game. “He’s physically a man – and he has been for some time” says Sherwood of the 19-year-old. The Villa manager has also confirmed Rudy Gestede isn’t quite match fit, and he’s resisted the temptation to start him up top against a trembling Chris Smalling.

Nathan Fisher is (sort of) against Friday night football:

“I can’t remember the name of the commenter in question, but last season, when the Friday night plans were first announced, someone below the line said: ‘eff off, just eff off with having football on a Friday night.’ It was the most poignant thing I have ever read, and requires no further comment. I’ll still be watching the game tonight though, because I’m a massive hypocrite.”

Twenty minutes until kick-off, with Villa Park still looking pretty empty. Here’s a suitable tune for our Friday night football spectacular, one I can imagine Sherwood belting out in the dressing room, with increasing intensity, right now.

Louis van Gaal has said Januzaj will get a chance in his favourite position - “number ten”, according to the United boss, so he’ll play centrally, behind, er, No10 Wayne Rooney.

Preston Goulson is for Friday night football:

“Maybe it’s because I’m from the USA! USA!! USA!!!, and we have our football spread out all across the week, but I love Friday Night Football. Players and managers might kvetch about it interfering with their rest and preparation, but it gives the masses something to tune into on weeknights (or, for those of us across the pond, something to watch while we’re “working”). Sorry, traveling Bournemouth supporters...”

Now, while tonight’s kick-off time is down, depressingly enough, to an EDL march rather than the TV powers that be, it’s a litmus test for Sky’s new Friday Night Football gimmick, which launches next season.

There were worse fixtures to conveniently drop into the test slot, with Manchester just a couple of hours up the M6 from Villa Park. Except the M6 has been closed all afternoon, and many fans, away or otherwise, could struggle to get here on time. No news yet on whether the kick-off will be delayed, but it seems unlikely.

No changes for Aston Villa, with Rudy Gestede staying on the bench, and Libor Kozak alongside him after eighteen months out. Just one change for Manchester United, but it’s an interesting one: Adnan Januzaj starts for the first time in the league since February, and Ashley Young dropping to the bench.

How do we feel about Friday night football, then? One man who isn’t waiting for the game to kick off to complain about it is Joey Barton, who could be watching a lot of Premier League football this season, if recent events are anything to go by.

Van Gaal has been busy too, with Ángel di María and Robin van Persie spat out by the Old Trafford revolving door as Memphis Depay, Morgan Schneiderlin, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Matteo Darmian and Sergio Romero have joined, all for a net spend a shade over £10 million. Whether this proves a good or bad window may very well depend on how the David de Gea saga ends; Romero will continue in goal tonight. To paraphrase Hansen, you won’t win anything with your best goalkeeper sitting in the stands.

Everything’s nicely poised for a ripping, one-off Friday occasion brought to us by Policing Concerns, rather than Sky (that starts next season). United’s travelling fans shouldn’t have too much to complain about, given their team’s record here and the short journey home. After all, it’s not like a massive hole just opened up in the Mancunian Way, is it? Oh.