Ahead of Ruben Amorim's first match in charge of Manchester United on Sunday, football writer Ben Bloom assesses what to expect from the new head coach.
Anticipation has rarely been higher. In 11 years since Sir Alex Ferguson retired, nine managers (five of them permanent) have occupied the Manchester United hot seat without lasting joy.
On Sunday, when Amorim becomes the 10th to lay claim to the position, the weight of expectation at one of the biggest clubs in world football will be almost unrivalled.
“It can take years for a manager to perfect his football ideals, but the best require only one game to show the world what they are,” wrote Jamie Carragher in the Telegraph this week.
“That is why Ruben Amorim’s introduction as Man Utd manager is the most eagerly anticipated Premier League debut in years.
“I cannot wait to see United take on Ipswich Town on Sunday afternoon because we are about to witness one of the most radical mid-season changes in formation and strategy ever imposed by one of the elite clubs.”
Can Amorim start with a win?
Amorim inherits a club that has floundered in recent times. After finishing eighth last season – their lowest place in the Premier League era – their start to 2024/25 has been their worst ever.
Sitting 13th after 11 matches is a position entirely unfamiliar for a club of United’s stature.
Amorim will be fully expected to hastily turn fortunes around and restore former glories that his predecessors have been unable to achieve.
Not since Ferguson signed off with his 13th Premier League title have United claimed English football’s biggest domestic crown.
It all begins at Portman Road on Sunday, where Amorim takes on an Ipswich side who tasted victory for the first time since their Premier League return when they beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 before the international break.
It is a match United supporters will anticipate winning, but things do not always start as planned for the club’s new managers.
Louis van Gaal and Erik ten Hag both lost the opening Premier League fixtures of their tenure, and Ferguson himself was on the wrong end of a 2-0 First Division defeat at Oxford United in his first match in November 1986.
Ferguson’s side languished down in 20th position after that loss, before he started turning things around.
Man Utd managers' debut match and result
| Manager | Fixture | Result |
| David Moyes | SWA (A), Aug 2013 | W 4-1 |
|---|---|---|
| Ryan Giggs | NOR (H), Apr 2014 | W 4-0 |
| Louis van Gaal | SWA (H), Aug 2014 | L 1-2 |
| Jose Mourinho | BOU (A), Aug 2016 | W 3-1 |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjaer | CAR (A), Dec 2018 | W 5-1 |
| Michael Carrick | CHE (A), Nov 2021 | D 1-1 |
| Ralf Ragnick | CRY (H), Dec 2021 | W 1-0 |
| Erik ten Hag | BHA (H), Aug 2022 | L 1-2 |
| Ruud van Nistelrooy | CHE (H), Nov 2024 | D 1-1 |
Amorim has not shied away from the pressure on his shoulders by pleading for time to implement his vision.
Instead, the Portuguese has said he is confident of putting the club back where it “belongs” and forging a new identity.
“We know that we need time, but we have to win time,” he told United’s club media last week.
“To win time is to win games. But the most important thing for me is identity. So, since day one, we will start with our identity.”
Asked specifically about what fans will see from the upcoming Ipswich game, he said: “You will see an idea.
“You could like it or not, I don’t know, but you will see an idea. You will see a positioning.
“You will see something that we want to reach that kind of level. You will feel that.”
What is Amorim’s football philosophy?
So great is the whirlwind of excitement that United fans, and the wider footballing world, have been busy poring over Amorim’s entire back catalogue in a bid to ascertain what his words might mean for Sunday’s match.
When asked what drives his footballing philosophy, Amorim reduced it to “one word: team”.
Speaking to former United defender Gary Neville on Sky Sports, Amorim explained further: “One idea is that when the ball is in one place and we are with the ball, or without the ball, every player has the same idea.
“Imagine that one guy receives the ball between the lines and he turns, every guy in the team knows what to do and everybody thinks the same. So it’s quite simple like that.
“You can call it hard work, being professional, all that stuff.
“But in my mind, one idea, one identity, everybody knows, everybody has the same idea when the ball is here, there or there.”
From his time in charge at Casa Pia, Braga and Sporting, we know Amorim is wedded to a 3-4-3 formation.
But he has also shown himself proficient at adapting his footballing beliefs to the particular demands at hand.
An example of his versatility depending on opposition can be seen in last season’s Primeira Liga charts, which Sporting topped for both build-up attacks (126) and direct attacks (74).
After he led Sporting to a 4-1 UEFA Champions League win over Manchester City earlier this month, primarily through sitting deep and playing on the break, Amorim said: “United cannot play the way we play, they cannot be so defensive.”
Interestingly, considering the criticism of United’s lacklustre work-rate under recent managers, the footage the club put out of Amorim’s first training session at Carrington included players chasing back hard upon the new head coach’s signal.
“I think we have to be better athletes,” he told Neville. “That is something that you can acknowledge when you are here and we see the data.
“What is the average metres that you have to run? We like to run and to sprint. To press high you have to be very fit and you have to cope with the demands of pressing high.”
He also discussed how United are too easily dispossessed.
“We lose the ball too fast,” he said. “We win the ball. We lose the ball. And you cannot press high all the time, so you have to keep the ball and understand that you have to be in the position to start one play.
“If you don’t lose the ball, we can push higher. If you are higher, you can press better. It’s like a snowball. Everything is connected."
At heart, suggests football journalist Guillem Balague, Amorim is a footballing entertainer.
“Amorim would admit he is still adding layers of knowledge to his methods but he still believes football only makes sense if those watching are thrilled by it,” Balague told BBC Sport.
“He is, though, an enthusiast of spectacular, offensive football, with lots of goals, domination and control. He is a crowd pleaser.”
Do not expect United to sit back and allow Ipswich to dominate possession on Sunday.
Who will make Amorim’s team?
All signs suggest Amorim’s favoured 3-4-3 formation will be put straight into action against Ipswich.
That means United’s players must hastily adapt to a number of changes.
United’s centre-backs will have to adjust to a back three for the first time since Van Gaal was in charge, while Amorim will need to identify whether he prefers to convert defensively-minded full-backs or attacking wingers into wing-backs.
Most likely, he will alternate depending on opposition.
His attacking preferences are for a traditional No 9 to lead the line, while Bruno Fernandes’ No 10 role will no longer be used, meaning the captain must either play as part of a central midfield two or an inverted wide forward.
Few team selections are certainties beyond Andre Onana in goal.
Jonny Evans, Leny Yoro and Luke Shaw occupied the three defensive spots in the training clip posted during the international players’ absence, but it would be a surprise if Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs de Ligt did not make the first starting XI if fit.
The wing-back positions are the greatest current unknown, with Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui the most likely candidates.
The return of Shaw and Tyrell Malacia from injury should provide alternative options in the coming weeks, while Amad or even Antony could potentially be asked to think more defensively minded.
Perhaps the most likely central midfield pairing for Sunday is one of Kobbie Mainoo or Fernandes alongside Manuel Ugarte, who excelled under Amorim at Sporting before moving to Old Trafford via Paris Saint-Germain.
Casemiro and Mason Mount are other options.
If Fernandes is used centrally, expect to see Alejandro Garnacho and one of Marcus Rashford or Amad in the forward roles alongside central striker Rasmus Hojlund.
Ultimately, Amorim says the biggest change – certainly against Ipswich – will be in style and positioning rather than personnel.
“We will adapt some players because we don’t have the right profile,” he said on Friday.
“This team was built for a different system. But it’s the same thing, playing with five or four [at the back]. The principles are the same. The positioning is a little bit different.
“Maybe on Sunday you will see the starting 11 and not feel a lot of change. But you will see it in the game and the positioning or where they receive the ball.”
The world will be watching.
