Begin as you mean to go along, as they say, but for Ruben Amorim, he’d hope that his Manchester United team goes along as they began the game, not their first result.
Ipswich Town went punch-for-punch against Manchester United and Ruben Amorim got an idea of how intense the Premier League is every match.
He was full of self-reflection after the game, focusing on the building blocks but ruing his team’s ability, aware of the job that lies in front of him.
Coming as the cream of the crop of Portuguese coaches, this game drew a lot of attention from the Portuguese press as well.
Here’s assessing Ruben Amorim’s debut as Man Utd manager and the Portuguese press’ reaction to it-
How Ruben Amorim fared on debut as Man Utd manager
Much of the talk has been about the players’ performance against Ipswich but it is worth assessing how Amorim fared in an individual capacity.
Of course, a manager is only as good as the players make him look but the manager can also maximise the strength of his players through his tactical setup.
Amorim installed his signature three-at-the-back system right away but the selections in those positions caught quite a few people off guard.
Injuries played a big part in that and Amorim will hope to accelerate the teachings of his system as soon as that one hand tied to his back in the form of injuries fades away.
Amad’s exemplary performance in an unfamiliar role will have pleased him and he also admitted he learned new things about the game of some of his players.
It is a process, to borrow a term from Erik ten Hag’s tenure, but unlike under the Dutchman, the building blocks were seen here and there, and therein lies Amorim’s big challenge- to have them visible more often.
Portuguese press on Ruben Amorim
It is no secret how highly rated Amorim is in his home country after his miraculous exploits with Braga and then Sporting.
There was a huge outcry and sadness when he left Sporting in the middle of the season so the focus on his debut as Man Utd manager was always going to be intense.
Portuguese outlet Zerozero ran a headline that read- “Amorim’s orchestra starts off-key”, but made a Sir Alex Ferguson comparison.
They wrote: “Not all great stories start well – as Manchester United legend Alex Ferguson can attest, having lost his first game as manager of the team back in 1986. This Sunday, Ruben Amorim’s debut proved to be a bitter one.
“The new era of Ruben Amorim and Manchester United began with a setback at the home of the third-bottom team in the Premier League. But, as in stories, it could have a happier ending.”
Another outlet, Publico, said that Amorim will be longing for his Sporting players as he began his Braga and Sporting spell with victories.
They wrote: “Unlike what had happened at Sp. Braga and Sporting, where he debuted with a victory, in Manchester Amorim’s first chapter ended with a draw and, certainly, a lot of longing for Hjulmand, Pedro Gonçalves, Trincão, Gyökeres and company.”
RTP Sport reported that Amorim had now arrived at the “world’s most important league”, covering his comments where he said ‘everything is new’.
They wrote: “The former midfielder arrived at the world’s most important league after just seven seasons as a coach. Amorim pointed out that his players had worked hard to achieve victory, but that everything is “still very new” for everyone since his arrival at Old Trafford.”
Observador captured the feeling of Man Utd fans after the game: “Enthusiasm gave way to silence. Before kick-off at Portman Road, where Ruben Amorim made his debut as Manchester United manager with a draw against Ipswich Town, the Red Devils ‘ fans were full of enthusiasm: they sang “Glory, glory, Man United”, shouted for Amorim, and mocked City’s rout the day before.”
“After the final whistle at Portman Road, the Red Devils ‘ fans were silent: they walked in silence to the train station, without much conversation, and only a few outbursts opened the door to more effusive demonstrations.”
There’s a long way to go yet and while this was not the best of starts, the need of the hour is to let Amorim work with the players and start putting a foundation in place.
As he said so himself, there’s a lot of “suffering” in store in the future but no good thing comes easy.
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