Ruben Amorim toasted a ‘special’ night at Old Trafford where he felt he was officially taken in as one of Manchester United’s own after getting his first win since taking charge.
Rasmus Hojlund’s brace either side of half-time saw United produce a crucial come-from-behind 3-2 win against a stubborn Bodo/Glimt side in the Europa League.
Amorim cut an anxious figure on the touchline throughout the match but walked down it at the final whistle brimming with pride after sealing his first win.
‘It was special,’ he said.
‘Half of the stadium doesn’t know me! I came from Portugal and half of the stadium doesn’t know me.
‘I’ve done nothing for this club yet but the way they support me in the beginning I felt that I am not alone here, I am one of them now. It was really special and I hope not to disappoint my supporters.’
Ruben Amorim was bristling with pride after securing his first victory as Man United manager
Rasmus Hojlund wheels away after scoring his second of the night – and Man United’s third
Alejandro Garnacho applies a simple finish to put the home side ahead after just 50 seconds
Man United, just as they did at Ipswich on Sunday, raced into an early lead with Alejandro Garnacho scoring after just 50 seconds.
But Amorim’s team failed to build on it and he knows that while this win was key in their stuttering Europa League campaign, plenty more is to come from his team.
‘Like a real ride,’ he said of the back-and-forth encounter.
‘We started well, but then suffered two goals in two transitions. I like the way the players tried to play our game.
‘Sometimes we won the ball and have had problems in the past giving the ball away too much – the mindset is keeping the ball.
‘They are really trying and I think we deserved the win.’
Hojlund’s brace, his second coming in front of the Stretford End, was a huge shot in the arm for a player that has looked lost in front of goal too often this season.
Amorim is level-headed despite his striker’s man of the match display, convinced he can go on and play even better.
Rasmus Hojlund may have scored twice but his manager, Ruben Amorim, was quick to point out that there is still plenty of room for improvement in the 21-year-old striker’s game
Bodo/Glimt gave Man United a scare when they went 2-1 ahead through Philip Zinckernagel’s strike (pictured) but the home side recovered to run out 3-2 winners in the end
Amorim will set his sights on a first Premier League win when his side host Everton on Sunday
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‘I think he improved the connection [with team-mates],’ Amorim said.
‘But he has to improve more because sometimes he has too many touches.
‘He was aggressive in the box and he is a quality player. I think he scores the most difficult goals and he has a lot to improve which is like a lot of the players.’
Hojlund’s goals last night took him to eight major European goals for United – the only players to score more aged 21 or younger for the club are Marcus Rashford and Wayne Rooney (nine each).
‘He told me not to think too much about the guys behind me and just work on what I can see in front of me. We saw that with the first goal,’ Hojlund said.
‘Obviously it’s going to take time [to adapt to his demands] and we can already see some patterns.
‘Now for us it’s time to build. For me this system reminds me of how I played in a 3-4-3 at Atalanta. It suits me well.’
Asked whether this was a building block from which they can build on ahead of facing Everton on Sunday, Hojlund kept it short and sweet.
‘We want to make sure these games don’t get too exciting,’ he said. ‘But it’s all about the three points, innit?’
