Indeed it was kind of the ideal performance and result from United. When was the last time we said that? 2-0. Clean sheet. 3 points ✅.

Ruben Amorim was in dire need of such a win and display from his side after all of the pressure he's had to endure so far this season. A lot of it was brought upon by himself with his choices but as you'll see, he did make amends for them in this match.

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1. Changed Lineup

And we start off with that amendment.

For quite a while, us fans have been crying out for changes to his starting XIs. We've looked at the team before matches and the little confidence we had going into a game all but disappeared entirely thanks to a selection that makes you wonder whether Amorim knows what he's doing.

Against Sunderland, we saw a team that resembled something closer to what we would like to see: Lammens finally started, Yoro was back in for Maguire (not sure why he was dropped in the first place), Amad returned as RWB, and there was a bit of a surprise to see new £62.5m signing Cunha on the bench for Mount.

However, all his changes were justified as Lammens was superb, Yoro had another solid performance, Amad played arguably his best this season, and Mount ended up scoring and was a contender for man of the match.

This shows a bit of adaptation from the manager as he dropped some players who were terrible at Brentford and that maybe he has been listening to us.

He can be flexible when he wants.

This is a team to build upon. I don't want to see Bayindir and Maguire back.

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2. Lammens

Honestly, this guy has changed our lives.

The thing is, he didn't actually do anything amazing. What he did was something we haven't seen in United's goal for 2 years: the basics.

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Lammens came out and claimed some crosses, the ball didn't go straight through him when he had to make saves, he parried it out of danger rather than into it, his distribution was decent and with both feet, and there was a commanding presence about him in the box.

There was definitely more confidence from the defense knowing that he was in goal. The several head pats they gave him whenever he did claim the ball or make a save was an indication of just how much they appreciated Lammens between the sticks.

It's a good sign for us all that his teammates have already taken a liking to him.

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What I enjoyed about his first game was that it had a bit of everything. He did need to make saves although they were ones he should make (but that will help will his confidence); there were crosses to come and claim which he did; and we did get to see some of his character in terms of how he controlled his box.

The fact that he kept a clean sheet as well will do him the world of good.

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3. Amad, Mbeumo Partnership

There was a clear connection between these two African players down that right flank.

Amorim came out after the game and said that Mbeumo benefits from having a player like Amad on the wing. This is because the Ivorian stays on the touch line to provide that width which allows Mbeumo to be more central. Here, he is more involved and he can get onto flick-ons by Sesko just like they linked up for the red card against Chelsea.

Amad down the right also provides us with something going forward which lacks on both wings because all of Dorgu, Dalot and Mazraoui struggle in the final third. This isn't the case with Amad as we know the quality he possesses in attack which is important for this system.

Both he and Mbeumo also had good games and is perhaps exactly what Amorim is looking for between them considering how often he uses both players down that side especially Amad as a RWB. He did move Dalot to the left to accommodate for Amad on the right.

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4. Long Throw-Ins

This isn't something new with United. It isn't something new in football as many sides (top clubs included) have been utilizing an old-school tactic that has resurfaced in the modern day. And how.

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Dalop (see what I did there? 😏) is our guy for this. He has been doing it throughout the season and with great quality as his throw-ins have been pretty much on point. He did so again in that first half resulting in Sesko's first Old Trafford goal and the strike that ultimately won us the game.

We've seen the Portuguese even run from the opposite end of the pitch in order to make this lung-busting throw.

Maybe this is why Amorim has him in the side? I see no other reason as to why he plays tbh.

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However, while it was effectual in this game and has caused oppositions problems, it's not a tactic that I actually like. We shouldn't really be resorting to this as a means of scoring mid-way through the first half. Last-minute when you need a winner or equalizer, sure, Rory Delap-it with everyone in the box including the GK.

But if you start to use it as a way to score more regularly, then you might have some problems. This shows a very basic style of play and one that doesn't require a lot of work on the training ground to execute.

Should you become really good at it, you might become too reliant on it as a way of putting the ball in the back of the net. Considering that we struggle with scoring anyways, this is a last resort and shouldn't be our main goal threat.

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5. Second Half Performance

For some reason, we seemed to let off and allow Sunderland to have a lot of the ball. While the overall possession was pretty much 50-50, the Black Cats did have slightly more of it in the second period with 51% compared to 49%.

United also appeared tired in the second half when looking at how flat we were and how much energy was lost. If this was the case, it would make no sense because we have a week off between matches. You could argue that we should be fitter than opponents with all the extra time.

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One could also point out to complacency from the team. As we were 2-0 up and cruising, there was always going to be the chance that we slow down and take things easy thanks to the comfort of the 2-goal advantage.

This is an issue we've had for several years as our team just don't seem to have that ruthless nature about them to keep the foot on the gas. There was no composure causing us to lose rhythm and not really create anything cohesive.

Sunderland did have a couple of good chances that on another day, could've gone in. Had that been the case, with our loss of momentum, it might have been difficult to get back into the match.

Fortunately, that didn't come to pass and we came out unscathed.

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Mason Mount scores in Man Utd's 2-0 win over Sunderland | Mason Mount: Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)