Manchester United defeat Sunderland 2-0: The result should be routine, but gives Ruben Amorim breathing room

Defeating a newly promoted side at home shouldn’t be a noteworthy accomplishment for a club of Manchester United’s stature, but the Red Devils defeat of Sunderland 2-0 at Old Trafford will give Ruben Amorim and the club much needed momentum heading into the international break. On a day that Amorim changed his goalkeeper with Senne Lammens, making his first start for the club, Manchester United also secured their first clean sheet of the season.

Not that Lammens had much to do in net, making three saves, but that speaks to the changes that Amorim made heading into the game. Sunderland are far from an average promoted side, they’ve already picked up 11 points on the season (one more than Manchester United), but even so, in your home stadium, these are the matches that you’re expected to win and win easy. 

Creating a goal from a long throw and another with an excellent finish from open play, United were able to open a 2-0 lead heading into halftime and manage the match to completion. It may seem like these should be simple things for a top side to do, but they were areas where United struggled last season, which is why they finished 15th in the league, and given that they’ve already been knocked out of the League Cup by Grimsby Town, it’s not like putting away lesser competition has been smooth sailing this season either.

Amorim made a big call in benching Matheus Cunha for Mason Mount, and it was one that paid off. Not only did Mount have a great finish for a goal, but his pressing was important to keep Sunderland contained in the match. Amad Diallo also looked comfortable getting the start at wing back where Patrick Dorgu has struggled. 

The good moments, such as those, are things that Amorim can take forward, because the difficulty will increase following the international break when they meet Chelsea in their first game back. It was Mount’s first start for United since coming off injured in an away victory over Burnley, but he has been at the center of some of United’s best performances this season under Amorim. Starting at striker during their opening day loss to Arsenal, Mount helped get the rest of the attack involved, and that was evident again facing Sunderland. 

Keeping the Englishman fit will be an issue, but when healthy, Amorim needs to find space for him in the XI. The new signings of Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbuemo, and Cunha need someone to transition the ball to them, and along with Diallo, Mount can do that. They even created space so that Bruno Fernandes could shoot from deep, all things that are critical to unlocking the best version of this squad. 

The top half are close enough, with only six points between United and first place Arsenal, that if the Red Devils can get things going, there will be space to challenge for a European place. At times this season, it has felt like all hope is lost for United, but a run of wins can do plenty to put that behind them. A team can’t start a run without the first one, so this victory is something to build from.