Manchester United’s fourth pre-season fixture of the summer ended in a draw as Rúben Amorim’s men were held to a 2-2 draw against Everton.
Rúben Amorim chose to hand Bryan Mbeumo his first minutes in a Manchester United shirt as they faced Everton in the United States for their third and final Premier League Summer Series fixture.
The tie started with United playing mixed football, as good passages of play were mixed with some sloppy passes. However, it did not take long for the Reds to take charge, with Bruno Fernandes converting a penalty won by Amad just before the 20-minute mark.
While United continued to attack, a few dodgy moments in defence allowed Everton the chance to fight back, and Iliman Ndiaye equalised just before the break after Manuel Ugarte was caught on the ball.
With the game a much more open one in the second half, it was substitute Mason Mount who was able to strike next, placing a fantastic curling effort past Jordan Pickford with 20 minutes to play.
Everton were able to pull themselves level after Amad tried to make a challenge on the edge of the area, but his tackle rebounded off Ayden Heaven and snuck past Altay Bayındır, with the tie ending in a 2-2 draw.
#1 – Amorim’s forward position experiments
With United yet to finish in the summer, Amorim used this fixture to experiment with his front three. Cunha started up front, with Fernandes on the left and Mbeumo on the right.
The front three were incredibly fluid, with all three having periods up front, on the left, and on the right, with wing-backs Amad and Diogo Dalot getting involved in the final third, too.
United looked a little out of sync due to the players’ fluid roles, which is expected as they are yet to establish a proper connection, but that will come with time.
#2 – Amad’s position is very unique
Pre-season has shown that Amorim’s idea of what the wing-backs are instructed to do this season is vastly different from their roles in the previous campaign.
While Amad did his fair share of defending alongside Leny Yoro in the first half, he was also relentless when running into the area, with his penalty win the perfect example of how his energy on the right, acting as a second winger at times, just became too much for Everton to deal with.
On a few occasions, he was caught ball-watching, but as it’s pre-season, it’s hard to judge players too much for minor errors. In all, despite some fearing that he’d be limited at wing-back, he appears to be well-suited to thrive once again, thanks to Amorim creating a very unique role.
#3 – Defensive errors are still a worry
Following the 4-1 win against Bournemouth in midweek, there was considerable praise for United’s attacking play. Still, Amorim was quick to point out that there were also a few defensive lapses in judgement that the squad were lucky to see go unpunished.
However, this was more evident against Everton, with United’s players sometimes caught sleeping on the ball, failing to follow their men, or making heavy touches or passes that led to panic.
There are two weeks until United kick off their season with a huge fixture against Old Trafford, and the players must iron out these little errors if they want to put in a statement performance.
#4 – Cunha starting to connect with his teammates
Matheus Cunha started as United’s striker in Atlanta, a position he has played many times across his career. However, his role was more of a floating attacker, as he, Fernandes, and Mbeumo interchanged in the first half.
Read More: Player Ratings – Manchester United vs Everton (pre-season)
While his first two appearances, against Leeds and West Ham, looked a little rusty, he looked a lot more like he was starting to settle in with his teammates on Sunday evening.
There were still a few sloppy or disconnected moments, as there were across the board, but it’s clear that he is benefiting from having a full pre-season with his new teammates as he looks to hit the ground running at Old Trafford.
#5 – United needed a scrappy pre-season game
It wasn’t a great performance, but experiencing a scrappy, high-intensity game in pre-season will be valuable for the Amorim squad.
It forces players to rely on structure and discipline when things aren’t flowing smoothly, which will sharpen their understanding of Amorim’s tactical instructions.
These kinds of matches also build resilience and prepare the team for the unpredictable nature of competitive fixtures, which they will undoubtedly experience in abundance in the Premier League next season.
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