Andre Onana made a pair of point-blank saves in Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town to preserve a point for Manchester United on Ruben Amorim’s debut.
Amorim’s first Premier League match since replacing Erik ten Hag on the bench started brilliantly, with Marcus Rashford giving United the lead after just 80 seconds. But Ipswich slowly grew into the game and equalized in the 43rd minute when Omari Hutchinson’s goal-bound strike earned a beneficial deflection off Noussair Mazraoui.
Onana prevented further damage by making himself big enough to deny two of Liam Delap’s close-range efforts.
Amorim, the sixth permanent manager hired by United since Sir Alex Ferguson stepped away from the game in 2013, has backed himself to turn around the club’s fortunes, but the evidence from Sunday’s stalemate shows a lot of work must be done to achieve the long-term success that eluded Ten Hag.
United switched to a back three for the match at Portman Road, with Amad Diallo and Diogo Dalot pushed into wing-back roles. The switched paid off immediately for Diallo, who ate up space before setting up Rashford’s first Premier League goal since September. It was less effective for Dalot, who came under constant pressure from Hutchinson and completed just 71% of his passes.
United struggled for control the rest of the match, and despite a number of inventive plays by Bruno Fernandes, the front line couldn’t convert any more of its chances.
“I think my players were thinking too much,” Amorim told Sky Sports. “We lost some balls without pressure. But they really, really tried, and they want this.”
Ipswich played positively after conceding and resisted United’s best attempts to press them into mistakes.
Sunday’s result follows the club’s stunning 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur, fueling hopes it can extend its first Premier League season in 22 years.
United move up a place to 12th, while Ipswich remain in the relegation zone in 18th place with eight points.
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