Ipswich Town return to action with a mouth-watering clash as they take on Manchester United at Portman Road, with Ruben Amorim taking charge of the Red Devils for the first time tomorrow. Alex Jones takes a closer look at the visitors.
Axing Ten Hag
Man United are a giant of a football club. In name alone, they’re one of the biggest clubs in the world, boasting a trophy cabinet that most of their rivals could only dream of. 20 top-flight titles, 13 FA Cup wins, three Champions League trophies. They’re simply huge.
But they’ve not been acting like it in the last decade.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013, they’ve not been the same. Sure, they’ve won things, but their fall from grace has been staggering. David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer all tried to take them back to the top. All of them failed, as did the interim appointments who only stayed for a few months.
Erik ten Hag’s arrival was seen as a breath of fresh air. His Ajax side were fun to watch and really successful, winning three Eredivisie titles and reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2018/19.
It never really clicked for the Dutchman at Old Trafford, however. He won the Carabao Cup in 2022/23 and followed it up by winning the FA Cup the following season, which likely saved his job. It always felt like a stay of execution, which came to an end in October following a 2-1 defeat at West Ham, which left the Red Devils in 14th place in the league table.
Ten Hag was sacked the following day - a decision which was supported by most Man United fans. But if he couldn’t save them, who can?
Amorim’s arrival
Funnily enough, the Man United managerial rumours were stronger over the summer when Ten Hag was still in the job than they were last month. Following their FA Cup win, his future was seemingly up for debate, with Thomas Tuchel, Mauricio Pochettino and Kieran McKenna high on the odds list.
This time, none of them were in contention. Tuchel took over Gareth Southgate’s position as England boss while Pochettino also started his international management career with the United States ahead of hosting the 2026 World Cup. McKenna never reached higher than 8/1 with the bookies due to the fact that he was winless with Ipswich after signing a new long-term deal.
It quickly became clear that Ruben Amorim was going to be the man that the Red Devils turned to.
The Portuguese ended his playing days back in 2017 and went straight into management in his native country, starting off with Casa Pia before taking on Braga. He made his name with Sporting CP, however, winning two league titles and two domestic trophies with them before leaving for England.
In his final home match, his side thumped Manchester City 4-1 in the Champions League – a result that got Man United fans dreaming of what could happen in the coming months and years.
His arrival at Old Trafford was a bit of an issue. A delayed visa meant that he couldn’t start work until the second week of the international break, with many players away representing their countries.
Nonetheless, there’s excitement around what’s to come, starting with his first game in charge this weekend. The 39-year-old has brought his own staff, even though it meant a painful goodbye for club legend Ruud van Nistelrooy, who took charge of the first team after Ten Hag’s departure. They’re about to enter a new era, but it may require patience.
Tactical tweaks
This season may be one of transition for Man United, who’ll simply want to avoid the embarrassment of a mid-table finish. That’s why Amorim will be given time to implement his style, which is totally different to Ten Hag’s.
The big change is the back line. Amorim has already hinted that he’ll stick to what he knows as he finds his feet at the club, which may mean that he’ll play a back five against Ipswich at Portman Road.
In reality, this is more of a back three. His wing-backs after often wingers tasked with covering a lot of ground to help out at both ends of the pitch. For example, his first choice on the left at Sporting CP was Maximiliano Araujo, who’s even played as a striker for some of his career.
Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui may be more natural as wing-backs, but could we see the likes of Alejandro Garnacho or Antony step into those roles? Training ground footage has already suggested that the latter may be given game time in a deeper position.
Amorim is also likely to drop the no.10 position from Ten Hag’s 4-2-3-1. With three centre-backs, someone will have to drop out of the forward line. Captain Bruno Fernandes is expected to shift out onto the left, leaving Marcus Rashford, Amad Diallo, Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Højlund to battle it out for just two spots.
They’ll all be eager to impress their new boss and show that they’ve got what it takes to start.
Players to watch
As mentioned, this isn’t the Man United of old. There’s no Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs or Nemanja Vidic, or even anyone of that ilk who’s likely to gain the legendary status that they all have.
That doesn’t mean that they’re not stacked with real quality. The Red Devils have spent billions on players in the last few years and have a strong team as a result. Getting the best out of them has been the issue.
Talisman Fernandes has just two goals so far this season, which is the same as strikers Højlund and Zirkzee have managed combined. Rashford only has one, which has seen him heavily criticised as a result.
In fact, the top scorer in the team is currently Garnacho, who has found the back of the net three times in 11 games – just seven of those have been starts. Fellow youngster Amad Diallo has spent most of his time at Old Trafford on the fringes of the first team (or out on loan at Sunderland), but has recently managed to nail down a starting spot on the right and perform to a high level on a consistent basis.
The big name behind them is Casemiro, who arrived at Man United 2022 after a glittering nine-year stint at Real Madrid where he won the Champions League five times. The 32-year-old has started to show his age, but will face a fascinating battle against Town skipper Sam Morsy on Sunday afternoon.
Goalkeeper André Onana deserves recognition too. The Cameroon international has kept five clean sheets – the most of any shot-stopper in the division so far this season – and tops the charts for goals prevented (3.8).
Team news
Man United are dealing with some injury issues, looking particularly light at centre-back.
Lisandro Martínez didn't feature during the international break, pulling out with a back injury. Victor Lindelöf [leg] is also set to miss out, as is Luke Shaw [calf]. Harry Maguire [ankle] is a doubt, meaning that Leny Yoro may play his first Premier League minutes.
The French youngster signed for the Red Devils from Lille over the summer but is yet to play a professional game for them after breaking his foot in pre-season. He's back in training, as is left-back Tyrell Malacia, who featured for the Under-21s in an EFL Trophy game last week after 16 months out.
Kobbie Mainoo is the only other doubt, having picked up a knock in the draw at Aston Villa last month.
Possible XI: 3-4-2-1: Onana; Yoro, De Ligt, Evans; Mazraoui, Ugarte, Casemiro, Dalot; Amad, Fernandes; Højlund
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