Amorim makes Old Trafford bow with a slim win in Europa League

Manchester United manager  Ruben Amorim begins life at Old Trafford with a nervy victory over Bodo/Glimt in the UEFA Europa League clash.

The former Sporting Lisbon manager began his stint with the Red Devils at Ipswich, ending his first game 1-1.

This will be a boosting win for Amorim as his team held on to win after a subtle tactical tweak at half-time, which saw his side revert to a back four out of possession.

Manchester United opened the scoring within the first minute as Rasmus Hojlund scored twice to hand Amorim his first victory as the team manager after his appointment this month. They had to get maximum coming from behind to beat their visitors.

Hojlund had the chance to net his first Europa League hat-trick had he not been pulled down by the Norwegian side’s goalkeeper, Nikita Haikan, after dispossessing him inside a minute.

Alejandro Garnacho took the resulting spot-kick and scored the opener to give Amorim another dream start.

United should have kept up the momentum, and the Norwegian team was punished by exposing holes in the back three. Hakon Evjen and Filip Zinckernagel struck twice in four first-half minutes to put the visitors ahead.

To Amorim’s relief, Hojlund leveled matters for the hosts when they struck a right-footed volley into the bottom corner just before half-time.

The Portuguese, who were clearly unhappy with the first-half performance, made a subtle tactical tweak, which seemed to work. They got the job done, although in a nervy fashion.

United maintained possession in a back three, as Diogo Dalot, who came in as a substitute for Tyrell Malacia, came inside almost as a No 10 but reverted to a back four without the ball to address the problems that led the Norwegian champions to pick the hosts apart in the first half, especially with the second goal they conceded.

These changes brought renewed confidence, and United went ahead five minutes after the restart. It was Hojlund again, slotting in after a lovely Mason Mount flick unlocked Manuel Ugarte, who put the ball on a plate for the Denmark striker.

This win moves United to 12th in the Europa League standings, their second win in the competition after five games. This leaves them two points away from the automatic qualification spots, while Bodo/Glimt are two points behind them in 17th.