The five key issues Ruben Amorim must fix at Man United

Old Trafford will welcome Ruben Amorim for his first home game on Thursday night, but don’t expect Manchester United’s new head coach to get carried away on a wave of emotion.

‘Everybody said to me it will be a special time, I just want to win the game,’ he admitted ahead of the Europa League tie against Norway's Bodo/Glimt. 

‘Before the match it will be like a new sensation, but after the whistle it will be one more game and we want to win it.’

Amorim is a man in a hurry. He has inherited an under-achieving team a third of the way into the season with United 12th in the Premier League after drawing his opening game at Ipswich on Sunday, and three places below Thursday night’s opponents in the Europa League, down in 15th.

The 39-year-old has set about implementing his own style of play on United immediately rather than waiting until the summer, and warned that his players will ‘suffer for a long period’ as they get to grips with the new system.

As Amorim prepares for his Old Trafford bow, Mail Sport looks at the issues that will be preying on his mind.

Rashford’s self-help secret

Marcus Rashford got the Amorim era off to the perfect start when he scored after 80 seconds at Portman Road, but then disappeared from the game.

A number of United managers know how that feels and Amorim was asked at Carrington on Wednesday if he can help Rashford get back to the kind of form that saw him score 30 goals in Erik ten Hag’s first season at the club and earn a new £300,000-a-week contract.

The former Sporting Lisbon boss quite cleverly put the emphasis on Rashford without directly calling the player out by saying that any revival must start with the player himself.

‘I will try to help him,’ said Amorim. ‘We'll try to find the right solution for him, as for the other players.

‘But he has to be Marcus, first of all, to try to return to that moment and then he will have all the help of the staff, the club and the fans because he's a Manchester United boy. But he has to be the first one to want it.’

Get the forwards firing again

It isn’t just Rashford who has been misfiring in United’s attack. Last season’s negative goal difference in the Premier League was a damning indictment of United’s failings in attack, and 13 goals in 12 games this term is little improvement.

After such a bright start at Ipswich, United rarely threatened again and that is something Amorim urgently wants to change.

‘Of course, there is a concern in that, but I think we have to improve as a team because we have quality players who can score so many goals,’ he said. ‘But you could feel it in the second half (at Ipswich). We controlled possession of the ball but we weren’t dangerous.

‘We will try to improve as a team and Rasmus (Hojlund) and Josh (Zirkzee) and Rash will score more goals, even Bruno (Fernandes) has to score more goals. Amad (Diallo) has to be better near the goal. All these guys can score so many goals.’

Hojlund and Zirkzee, signed for a combined £106million across the last two summers, have contributed a total of three goals in a combined 31 appearances this season.

It’s no surprise that United’s No 1 priority over the next two transfer windows will be a striker, with Amorim heavily linked with his old Sporting Lisbon frontman Viktor Gyokeres - who has already endeared himself to United fans with a Champions League hat-trick against rivals City.

Bring the squad up to speed

So much of United’s progress under Amorim this season will depend on how quickly he can make them buy into his philosophy.

It will be easier said then done judging by the performance at Ipswich, where he admitted he had picked certain players because they had been able to work longer at Carrington during the second week of the international break and adapt to his ideas.

But with two games a week through to the New Year and training time at a premium, Amorim conceded that he will have to rotate his squad to expose as many of the players as possible to his 3-4-3 formation and style.

‘We have to do it,’ he added. ‘They have to feel they are part of the team. We have to try to win every game, have a clear idea of how to play and everybody has to be on the same page.

‘Some guys will play and in the next game we will change positions. Some guys that don't play will train the next day. They will have an opportunity for a real training session.’

Asked how long he thinks it will take to get his message across, Amorim replied: ‘It's hard to compare things. It will be tough but it will be tougher for them, they are on the pitch. They will suffer.’

Make the players press

One area where United are sure to suffer is Amorim’s pressing game which requires maximum effort from his players. Despite talk of a more high-octane approach at Ipswich, his team ran a combined distance of 63.4 miles, their second-lowest of the season.

Those stats have to improve and United will need more energy against a hard-working Bodo/Glimt team who have already beaten FC Porto and Braga in the Europa League this season.

Amorim may use the younger legs of Manuel Ugarte and Kobbie Mainoo on Thursday night after starting with the older tandem of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen against Ipswich.

‘I'm expecting a very good team,’ said Amorim. ‘They run a lot and that is a very good thing for us in this moment. We need to improve that.

‘We know that in this game we have to run a lot. I’m expecting a very intense game. I hope to see different things and improve some things we didn't do so well in the last game.’

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Tighten up at the back

United had to rely on several fine saves from goalkeeper Andre Onana to get a point at Ipswich, where Amorim switched to a back three with Noussair Mazraoui and Jonny Evans playing either side of Matthijs de Ligt.

He is expected to go with the same formation tonight, although Lisandro Martinez returned to training yesterday and could replace Evans.

Harry Maguire was also back but Amorim is unlikely to risk the England defender or long-term absentee Leny Yoro who took part in an individual session. ‘He’s a young guy, this is a massive club and the first image is very important,’ he said of the 18-year-old, a £52m summer arrival from Lille.

Either way, the new head coach will be anxious to see a more solid defensive display against Bodo Glimt.