Manchester United were held to a goalless draw with Leeds United at the Friends Arena in Solna, Sweden to kick off their pre-season tour.
Fielding two entirely different teams in each half, Man United manager Ruben Amorim learned a harsh truth, namely that his first-half lineup appeared far more confident on the ball, thereby controlling the game better and allowing the Leeds attack far less leeway.
Clearly, he has plenty of work still to do on the training pitch with a large portion of his squad.
First half
Two minutes in, Leeds almost caught Man United off guard with a close-range shot that Noussair Mazraoui did well to head out of danger.
Matheus Cunha looked sharp on his United debut, using some fancy footwork to dribble past Ethan Ampadu and win a free-kick due to a subsequent foul.
While both Cunha and fellow debutante Diego Leon appeared energetic, the team looked fairly lethargic for much of the first half-hour, showing a slow attacking tempo.
About 30 minutes in, United looked threatening as Chido Obi dribbled to the edge of the box to force a save from the goalkeeper. It was a decent pass
Five minutes later, Toby Collyer found Amad Diallo on the right, whose shot drifted wide.
Three minutes from the break, Chido Obi crafted a decent scoring opportunity, receiving the ball within the box and swivelling to shoot. Unfortunately, his shot drifted inches wide of the post. The youngster exhibited great awareness throughout the first half.
Just after the 45-minute mark, Casemiro made an intelligent cross from the right side of the box. His cross was deflected onto the crossbar, with the referee blowing the half-time whistle seconds later.
While it was a slow-paced start to the match, Cunha, Leon, and Obi all looked sharp from the outset, providing some optimism at the start of United’s pre-season tour.
Second half
United took to the field with an entirely fresh lineup in the second half, thereby enabling as many players to get time on the pitch as possible.
Ruben Amorim’s men looked firmly in control during the opening minutes of the second half, although they didn’t yet appear threatening in the final third.
In the 55th minute, Leeds launched a sporadic attack, with Jayden Bogle taking a blistering shot from close range that Tom Heaton superbly saved. The subsequent corner was threatening, with Ao Tanaka blasting his shot wide.
Near the hour mark, Rasmus Hojlund received the ball on the edge of the box, attempting a back-heeled pass which was cut out. While the Dane was brought down in the box, no foul was given.
Leeds then countered, with Heaton doing well to stop the attack in its tracks. The referee then blew the whistle for offside.
Just minutes later, Leeds were at it again, with Largie Ramazani taking a shot from the left that Heaton did well to block with a diving save. The goalkeeper was enjoying a fantastic performance.
In the 74th minute, Harry Maguire was replaced by Tyler Fredericson.
Straight after the restart, Ramazani was at it again, cutting into the box from the left flank. Yet again, Heaton was on high alert, catching his shot.
13 minutes from time, United sparked to life, attacking with intent to win a corner. Mount’s cross was subsequently caught by an alert goalkeeper.
With 10 minutes to play, Jack Fletcher came on for Bendito Mantato.
Patrick Dorgu was brought down in the box, triggering calls for a penalty from the crowd. The wing-back refused to give up, however, returning to his feet and taking a blistering shot to force a save by the keeper at the near post.
Three minutes from time, United came agonisingly close to breaking the deadlock. A United corner resulted in a goalmouth scramble, with Mainoo heading the ball into the frame of the goal. Ayden Heaven did well to pounce on the rebound, with the goalkeeper denying his effort barely inches away from the goal line.
At the end of three minutes of added time, the referee blew the full-time whistle. While there were signs of promise from several United stars, it’s clear that Amorim has plenty of work to do to get his team into the swing of things ahead of next season.
Starting XI: Bayindir, Mazraoui, De Ligt, Fernandes, Cunha, Amad, Casemiro, Shaw, Leon, Obi, Collyer
Subs: Heaton, Dalot, Heaven, Maguire, Dorgu, Mainoo, Mantano, Mount, Ugarte, Hojlund, Yoro
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Mathew Cohen
A faithful Manchester United supporter, Mathew has worked as a football writer and analyst for SB Nation, FanSided, and now The Peoples Person. Mathew’s heroes include David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Sir Alex Ferguson, all of whom played their part in creating some special childhood memories.
