Ruben Amorim’s first game as Manchester United’s head coach was a rollercoaster of emotions as he saw his side draw 1-1 with Ipswich.
The day Ruben Amorim will have been dreaming of for weeks has come and gone, but it was far from the dream outcome for the 39-year-old.
Manchester United were unable to capitalise on Marcus Rashford’s goal inside two minutes, with Omari Hutchinson scoring a great goal to equalise.
The game ended in a 1-1 draw between United and Ipswich, however, it is the home side that will likely feel they deserved more from the game.
Without Andre Onana’s brilliance in goal, things could have been much worse for United and Amorim.
So with the game now in the books, there are two decisions Amorim got spot on, but also two he got wrong.
Noussair Mazraoui at centre-back was a masterstroke
One of United’s best performers on Sunday was Noussair Mazraoui, with the Moroccan used as a central defender by Amorim.
Mazraoui impressed Amorim with his performance, with the new head coach tipping United’s No.3 to be a crucial fixture in his team going forward.
It is clear to see why he would think this, as Mazraoui had 127 touches in the game along with being very solid defensively. An excellent call by Amorim to use him in this position and something we should expect more of going forward.
Amad Diallo impressive as a wing-back
Another experiment by Amorim on Sunday was Amad Diallo who started as the right wing-back and he instantly proved the Portuguese coach correct to name him there.
Amad was arguably the man of the match and was handed an eight out of 10 match rating as he assisted Rashford’s goal with an impressive dribble down the right.
United’s wing-backs are likely to change a lot over the coming months, but if anyone laid down a marker against Ipswich it was Amad, so we expect he will start again against Bodo/Glimt on Thursday.
Midfield of Casemiro and Eriksen is shambolic
Amorim got a couple of things correct, but one he got wrong was the midfield.
Combining Casemiro and Christian Eriksen in midfield left United weak in midfield as neither is particularly mobile, to say the least.
Now, Amorim was not blessed with options as neither Kobbie Mainoo nor Manuel Ugarte were deemed fit to play – however, going forward this pair is who we would imagine will play.
It will however be a lesson to Amorim not to play this pair together.
Alejandro Garnacho struggles as the inside forward
The biggest loser from Amorim’s first game was Alejandro Garnacho, with the 20-year-old having a poor day at the office.
Deployed as the left-sided No.10, Garnacho managed to pull off very little that he attempted as he looked unnatural in the middle, while also missing one big chance.
The No.17 also failed to convert a possible one-on-one as he wasn’t strong enough to hold off the defender – something Amorim pointed out post-game with physicality a concern.
Garnacho’s strengths would lend themselves to being a wing-back far more than a No.10, which could be where he ends up. But Garnacho’s display makes this a decision wrong from Amorim – but one he will learn from.
Amorim was always going to get things wrong here after only a handful of training sessions, so there are plenty of things to learn from.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
