Confirmed XI: Amorim names his first XI to face Ipswich at Portman Road! 3-4-3 system in play with Amad & Dalot as wing-backs? Rashford at 9?

Manchester United return to Premier League action on Sunday afternoon as they head to Portman Road to face Ipswich Town. It is another new era for United who have a new manager, Ruben Amorim. Ruud van Nistelrooy led United in four matches and is undefeated following the sacking of Erik ten Hag at the end of October.

United need to start getting some good results now that the all of the international matches are done for 2024 and we head into the busy festive period where United will play 11 matches between now and the end of the year. United will feature in the Premier League, Carabao Cup and the UEFA Europa League in the coming weeks.

United, at the time of writing, sit in 13th place in the Premier League with just 15 points from 11 matches this season. Ipswich sit in 17th place in the Premier League with eight points from 11 matches, which makes their current spell in the English top flight dangerous as they sit just above the relegation zone.

Manchester United

Onana;

Mazraoui, De Ligt, Evans;

Amad, Casemiro, Eriksen, Dalot;

Fernandes, Rashford, Garnacho

Substitutes

Bayindir; Malacia, Shaw; Mount, Ugarte, Mainoo; Hojlund, Zirkzee, Antony

Ipswich Town

Muric;

Tuanzebe, O’Shea, Burgess, Davis;

Morsy, Cajuste;

Burns, Hutchinson, Szmodics;

Delap

Substitutes

Walton, Clarke, Woolfenden, Townsend, Luongo, Taylor, Chaplin, Clarke, Al-Hamadi

United once beat Ipswich 9-0 in the Premier League and there have only been six matches played between the two sides since that match at Old Trafford in March 1995 – almost 30 years ago. United have won four of those six matches, drawing once and losing once. Amorim will need to get this team firing as the season is not over yet.

Under Van Nistelrooy, United played a good game but there were still visible holes in the development of the squad, which is something the new manager will need to overcome. It has been said that Amorim has demanded more speed, intensity and dynamic thinking during training sessions, which is great to hear.

United need to shorten the recovery times when the ball is lost and improve the link between physical conditioning and mental sharpness. It really sounds like United now have a manager who will look at all the intricate details to hone on the best abilities of each player in the squad, recruiting in the areas that fall short of his expectations.

Written by Paul