Coach Ruben Amorim has had a difficult start at Old Trafford after being appointed in the middle of the 2024-2025 season, one of the most pressuring positions in football.
In the darkest moments of the club, Amorim always insists that things will be better when he has time to work alongside the players, away from the tight Premier League schedule.
That time has come, and fans are waiting for signs of improvement in the US tour. Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo have joined, while Marcus Rashford has moved to Barcelona, giving the Red Devils a new look.
However, Amorim still has many problems to solve in his trip to the US. The Dutch captain needs to outline the first steps towards the reconstruction process, preparing for the Premier League campaign starting on August 17 against Arsenal.
Try to score more goals
This was a problem for Man United last season, and they tried to solve it by spending more than £130m to recruit Cunha and Mbeumo. The combination of these two players and Bruno Fernandes will be the key to helping Amorim's team score more regularly in the coming season. And that has been demonstrated right from the training sessions at the Chicago base.
M.U's pre-season started with a 0-0 draw with Leeds in Stockholm. The games against West Ham, Bournemouth and Everton will be very important in developing the attacking style of play that Amorim wants to see when the Premier League campaign starts.
Finding a position for Mbeumo
The Red Devils believe that recruiting Mbeumo from Brentford is an important step. Amorim's next task is to find the right position for him in the squad.
Amorim expects Mbeumo to take over one of the top 10 positions alongside Cunha in the 3-4-3 formation. However, that means Amorim will have to continue to use Rasmus Hojlund or Joshua Zirkzee - the duo who scored a total of 7 goals in the Premier League last season - as a striker.
If Mbeumo plays as a striker, Amorim could use Fernandes, Mason Mount or Kobbie Mainoo as one of the 10 alongside Cunha. Conversely, if Mbeumo plays as a No. 10, it will be difficult to determine the right position for Mount and Mainoo.
Handling players not in the plan
Man United have decided to support Amorim by allowing him to remove the names of Alejandro Garnacho, Antony, Jadon Sancho and Tyrell Malacia. But that does not mean the problem has been solved.
Amorim will face questions about their futures, especially in the context of not being able to sell. Rashford's departure before the tour starts is a positive thing, and Amorim needs to quickly deal with the rest. That was the distraction he didn't need.
Making a decision in the goalkeeper position
This is a sensitive issue. There is not much information from the "Red Devils" about whether they are looking for a replacement for Andre Onana in goal. However, the Cameroonian international is now injured again and will miss most of the pre-season.
This makes Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton the main goalkeepers for the tour. One of the two will even start the opening Premier League match against Arsenal if Onana does not recover in time.
Onana has gone through two ups and downs at Old Trafford. He was left out of the trip to Newcastle at the end of last season after making a mistake against Lyon in the Europa League. If Man United can raise money from selling players, the goalkeeper could be the position they want to consolidate.
