Darren Fletcher claimed the goal after Patrice Evra's cross rebounded off Sol Campbell and then the Scot's shins before creeping beyond stranded goalkeeper David James.
It may have crept over the line but Sylvain Distin's frantic attempt to clear put the ball into the roof of the net and earned United only their second win at Fratton Park in the last six meetings.
For Pompey it was another setback after last Sunday's 4-0 defeat at Chelsea.
The new partnership up front between Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch again came up empty and looked less lethal than that of Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney.
United were still missing some key injured players like Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick and Owen Hargreaves but their midfield coped comfortably enough with the equivalent Pompey department in which Sean Davis made a surprise comeback.
This time Hermann Hreidarsson was left out and Pompey lined up with three centre backs in Campbell, Distin and new £5million man Younes Kaboul.
Portsmouth's shock FA Cup quarter-final victory at Old Trafford in March probably robbed United - the Premier League and European Champions - of a glorious treble.
And the home side rubbed it in by parading the the famous old trophy before kick-off.
So there was a bit of edge in this match between two sides who met in two fairly friendly encounters pre-season.
Now United will face a gap of nearly two weeks after meeting Russia's Zenit St Petersburg for the European Super Cup in Monaco on Friday and then facing back-to-back fixtures with Liverpool and Chelsea.
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