Manchester United played out a 1-1 draw at Fulham this afternoon as Ruben Amorim’s men again failed to win their first Premier League game of the season.
As they did against Arsenal last weekend, they played reasonably well and no doubt Amorim will focus on the positives. But another game has gone without United claiming three much-needed points.
Rodrigo Muniz’s own goal gave the visitors the lead at Craven Cottage but Emile Smith Rowe came off the bench to grab a deserved share of the spoils for the home side.
United captain Bruno Fernandes also blazed a first-half penalty over the bar.
Ruben Amorim continues to struggle
Despite some heavy investment over the summer with United spending almost £200million on improving their attacking options with Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko, they still lack creativity going forward.
They have managed just 10 shots on target across two games against Arsenal and Fulham – an average of roughly one every 18 minutes – and mustered just one goal. And that was not scored by a United player.
Cunha was lively this afternoon and almost netted twice in the first half, an early effort coming back off the post and another superbly saved by Bernd Leno in the Fulham goal.
Ruben Amorim’s win ratio
Amorim’s first game in charge of United after leaving Sporting CP for Old Trafford came at Ipswich on November 24 last year.
He has presided over 29 games in the Premier League and won just SEVEN, a win ratio of 24.1 per cent.
Of those seven, only four have come against teams in this season’s Premier League. Three came against Southampton, Ipswich and Leicester, all of whom were relegated.
He has managed just 28 points over those 29 games.
Ruben Amorim’s record against the big boys
It is sometimes claimed that United under Amorim save their best for the title contenders but the stats don’t really back that up.
Against the other members of the traditional ‘big six’ – Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea – Amorim’s men have played eight and won just one, and that was a last-gasp, come-from-behind win at City.
They have lost four of those eight, drawing the other three.
What comes next for Ruben Amorim’s Reds?
The next six games for United are a real mixed bag of winnable fixtures and matches in which they may struggle.
Next up is a home game with Burnley on Saturday before they face City and Chelsea in successive weeks.
They go to the Etihad after the international break on September 14 before hosting world champions Chelsea on October 20.
United visit Brentford the week after before hosting newly promoted Sunderland – games that really should reap six points. They then face the daunting prospect of a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on October 19.
