“So our team is good again,” read the banner at Manchester United’s away kick-off against Ipswich. Simple, but effective, advice for Ruben Amorim.
Amorim has taken over at a club whose demand is higher than any other club in world football.
You have to win. Otherwise, you will be shown the door, just like the six permanent managers before him.
As the first whistle blew to herald a new era at Portman Road for United, you could feel the anticipation at the away end. Football is about being able to dream. Brighter days may be just around the corner.
Look at Ipswich Town – this time two years ago, they drew 1-1 with Fleetwood Town in League One.
He has completed Fleetwood to Hollywood.
And Amorim could not have made a better start as Marcus Rashford needed just 81 seconds to send those hopes into the far end.
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Highlights from the Premier League match between Ipswich and Manchester United
United are back. Move over Man City.
But those 81 seconds are really good.
United did not take advantage of the perfect introduction.
The visitors were passive in midfield with the axis of Christian Eriksen and Casemiro overrun, creativity was lacking in the forward area and goalkeeper Andre Onana had to save to get the points in the 1-1 draw. Sound familiar?
Amorim cut a frustrated figure in the cave.
Ipswich won easily in the expected goals match 1.75 vs 0.81 as Liam Delap was thwarted by some world class stops by the United players in the match in goal.
Getting a point may not deserve baby steps, rather than giant leaps, but it should be remembered Jurgen Klopp started with a 0-0 draw at Tottenham while the Liverpool boss and Mikel Arteta drew Arsenal’s first match 1-1 with Bournemouth.
Something to cling to, perhaps.
The good: Amad is thriving in his new role
Amorim went with what he knew in terms of structure, taking the back three/back five he had used in the last 188 games as Sporting boss. United have not started with three defenders in the Premier League since April 2022 when they lost 4-0 at Liverpool under Ralf Rangnick.
The main tactic and the goal of this structure is to make the field big by playing very wide wing-backs, therefore encouraging the front three – in this case Alejandro Garnacho, Bruno Fernandes and Rashford – to play a lot and rotate. in the width of the posts where they can be most effective.
The services of the rather strong midfield duo are absent in the three due to the right wing-back Amad Diallo emerging in this system.
Amad stood up to the challenge of playing as a wing-back
He looks like he’s played there his whole career, finding a balance between attack and defense with ease, while dealing with a dangerous customer in Ipswich’s Leif Davis.
The United youngster was the catalyst for a perfect start, showing great drive and intensity with the ball to send Ipswich back into the goal before sending an assist for Rashford to head home.
It was a performance full of desire to impress. Direct and energetic with the ball but also energetic and confident when called upon defensively. No more so than when he beat Davis to a loose ball at the back post with a full-back finish on 20 minutes and, in the end, he made five clearances in the game – no player had more.
Ipswich tried their best to target their weakness without the ball but they held firm.
While Amorim made changes in the second half, Amad stayed on the field. A huge vote of confidence from his manager.
Bad guy: Where’s the high line? Creativity?
One of the main characteristics of Amorim’s side is their aggressive high line. There were no such signs even on Portman Road.
United, especially in the latter stages of the first half where Ipswich paid to dominate, defended deep which invited pressure from Town’s aggressive front line.
In Europe’s top leagues, only Man City, Benfica and Porto have played a higher defensive line (measured by average starting distance) than Sporting since the start of last season – an average of 3.5m higher than Man Utd’s numbers below Erik ten Hag.
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Ruben Amorim gave his honest assessment of Manchester United’s performance at Ipswich, until he was bumped by Ed Sheeran!
Establishing that cohesion and chemistry in the back line will take time, so it may not be surprising after only a few days in the job if his aggressive offside traps are not on display, especially as Amorim can show that he does not have the personnel to match that style.
Jonny Evans turns 37 in January and he is a weak player on the left side of the back three – something he hasn’t done in a decade. Watching Amorim in the dugout, it was clear he was frustrated during the first 45 minutes as Ipswich continued to run down the right through Omari Hutchinson and Wes Burns, raising his hands in the air every time the pair moved Ipswich into danger. position.
Evans’ raucous challenge on Hutchinson midway through the first half concluded the game.
When Luke Shaw returned in the 56th minute, United improved significantly in limiting the pressure from the side as the match wore on.
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Roy Keane gives his honest verdict on Ruben Amorim’s first Premier League game.
But even then, a lack of creativity in forward areas prevented United from putting pressure on Ipswich in the latter stages. It’s certainly a tame Manchester United attack that has scored just 19 goals in its last 17 Premier League games – an average of 1.13 goals per game.
Of the remaining Premier League teams during that time, only Everton averaged fewer goals per game.
Ipswich limited them to very little in the big moments, which was illustrated by the small numbers that registered only 16 touches in the box. At half-time, the number was just four. Only once in Ten Hag’s reign did he have less in the first half of a Premier League game and when he had one touch at Liverpool in 2023.
Progress is hard to see, but this is clearly a long game for United. Clearly there is no quick fix.
If Amorim didn’t know the task ahead, he did now.
Amorim’s upcoming schedule
- November 28: Bodo/Glimt (h) 8pm, Europa League
- December 1: Everton (h), 1.30pm, Premier League
- December 4th: Arsenal (a), 20.15, Premier League
- December 7: Nottingham Forest (h), 5.30pm, Premier League – live on Sky Sports
- December 12: Viktoria Plzen (a), 17.45, Europa League
- December 15: Man City (a), 16.30, Premier League – live on Sky Sports
- December 17: Tottenham (a), 19.45, Carabao Cup – live on Sky Sports
