Ruben Amorim knows he has a tough task ahead at Man United and there is no silver bullet – but getting the most out of a star is his biggest challenge, writes CHRIS WHEELER

By his own admission, he started the day feeling a little “anxious.” In the end, Ruben Amorim looked rather exhausted after drawing with Ipswich at windswept Portman Road in his first match as Manchester United head coach.

A tired-looking Amorim returned to the pitch to speak to Sky Sports pundits, including Roy Keane who had pulled himself together after that row with a local fan.

“This is the last time,” he said. “I spoke more this week than in four years at Sporting Lisbon. When you talk too much and you don’t win, it’s really difficult for everyone.

Amorim need not say that the time for discussions is over. He bid farewell to Lisbon and welcome to Manchester, his United debut and now his first Premier League game.

After a rather disappointing start, he looked like a man who just wants to get back on the training pitch with his players with what little time they have before Bodo Glimt arrives at Old Trafford in the Europa League on Thursday. United will play 10 matches over the next five weeks, so preparation time will be limited.

Amorim was named head coach and coaching is what he does best. He is an excellent communicator, a natural in front of the cameras, but the 39-year-old is more comfortable on the pitch, improving players and inspiring them to follow his philosophy.

And God knows there’s still a lot of room for improvement right now. Scared and confused were just two of the words Amorim used to describe his players against Ipswich.

“They tried but they have so much room for improvement and that’s a good thing,” he added. “They can do so much better.”

United’s new boss has warned us there won’t be enough time to make radical changes in his first game in charge, but we’ll get an ‘idea’ of what he stands for, and he was right.

United played in their 3-4-3 formation with Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui the two men furthest out of their comfort zone at right back and centre-back respectively.

To be fair, they were two of United’s best players, and Amad set up Marcus Rashford’s opening goal after just 80 seconds.

Amorim chose not to celebrate and it was a wise decision. United had a chronic knack of giving up leads under Erik ten Hag and they were at it again at Portman Road as Omari Hutchinson equalized before half-time with a shot that took away an unfortunate slash from Mazraoui.

A draw was the least Ipswich deserved as Andre Onana made a series of crucial saves, notably from Liam Delap.

This wasn’t the only familiar problem from the Ten Hag era that Amorim encountered. With Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, he had an aging midfield tandem. Diogo Dalot once again had to play out of position on the left. For all the talk about players running harder to execute his pressing game, the United team’s combined distance of 102 kilometers was the second lowest this season.

At least some of these problems will resolve themselves. Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia returned to the bench at Ipswich for the first time this season – in Malacia’s case, for the first time in 18 months – hence the left-sided problems which have plagued United for much of the season last one are almost finished.

Manuel Ugarte replaced Casemiro in the second half and will likely do so permanently after Amorim admitted he only picked the Brazilian because he had more time to train at Carrington last week and prepare for this match.

Kobbie Mainoo was also back in the team for the first time in seven weeks and provides a more energetic option for Eriksen. It would be a surprise if Ugarte and Mainoo did not become the preferred duo sooner rather than later, with the Uruguayan sitting back and the England midfielder pushing when needed.

However, other problems will not be solved so easily. Getting these players to bust their guts out and run harder and longer is a problem that dates back to the days of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Ralf Rangnick.

Amorim’s success at Sporting relies on the collective effort of his players, and the game plan depends on it. He has no choice but to rely on this squad for now, but in the long run he may have no choice but to bring in a fitter, more willing group of players .

And then there is the problem of scoring goals. Rashford gave a dream start to the Amorim era, but then disappeared from the game, and it’s not the first time either. Getting the best out of the exasperating and erratic Rashford is one of his biggest challenges.

Alejandro Garnacho wasted the chances that presented themselves against Ipswich, while Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee had little effect. United lacked creativity and were rarely threatened after taking the lead.

This is one of the many thoughts that will have occupied Amorim’s mind on his return from Suffolk.

He admitted the root of his anxiety was not really knowing what he was going to get from his team at Portman Road; the lack of reassurance and control he enjoyed at Sporting.

In this case, it really is shaping up to be an uncomfortable introduction to life in the Premier League.