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By MIKE KEEGAN Published: 04: 00 AEDT, 27 November 2024 | Updated: 05: 19 AEDT, 27 November 2024 20 View comments Ruben Amorim did not have to wait long to get his first reminder of the task he has taken on at Manchester United when his new charges limped to a 1-1 draw with a club whose wage bill is 14 times smaller, away to Ipswich Town. While the Portuguese would have been busy installing his new formation at Carrington earlier on Tuesday, another jolt landed - when United posted their accounts for the first quarter of the financial year. They made for stark reading. United lost £6. 9million in three months, which may not seem like a huge deal. But it continues a desperate pattern. Last year they posted a £113. 2m loss. Over the previous five years, losses have totalled more than £370m. Current Premier League Profit and Sustainability rules (PSR) allow for £105m over three years. United are confident they will hit those targets because the regulations allow sums spent on infrastructure, academy and women's teams to be deducted from the calculations. Someone in the accounts department will have to get seriously busy over the coming months before the end of the reporting period, almost as busy as the new man in the dugout. All of this points to a recognition that has been swirling around Old Trafford since control was handed to Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ineos.  Money is tight. The latest man charged with restoring Manchester United to those increasingly distant glory days under Sir Alex Ferguson will not be able to pull out the cheque book and buy his way back to the top. Ruben Amorim's first game in charge of Manchester United ended in a 1-1 draw at Ipswich Town His new charges have one of the largest wage bills in the league - almost 14 times that of Ipswich 'The firepower to come in and rebuild the side just isn't there, ' explained one insider. 'That's down to years of losses. ' There is a recognition within the club that those losses have been driven by a generally appalling record in the transfer market. Amorim and Ineos are paying for the sins of those who went before them and will now have to get creative because, put simply, they cannot spend their way out of this mess. Even if they had the cash, the rules will not allow it. None of this is to say that any of the above comes as a surprise to the new man or the Ineos brains trust. While United wanted a new manager with tactical acumen, energy and charisma – and officials already see indications that they have succeeded on all three fronts – they also knew that they needed someone who can get the best out of what they have. Amorim did not benefit from a huge budget at Sporting Lisbon and is known as a developer of young talent. He will be tasked with unearthing gems within United's academy system. In the era of financial fair play, finding another Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho is priceless. Amorim will work closely with sporting director Dan Ashworth and technical director Jason Wilcox to identify ways to improve the squad which will not put United in financial breach. A current and clear area of need is at left back but an orthodox fix is tricky. United may well seek a deal which sees them take a solution on loan, with the addition of an agreed fee at a later date. The emphasis will continue to be on recruiting younger players. Arrivals of those with the profile of a Casemiro and an outlay of £70m on a 30-year-old, are a thing of the past. As for the future, Amorim took 16-year-old Godwill Kukonki on the trip to Portman Road and while the young defender benefitted thanks to an injury crisis in defence, that move may well be a glimpse of what is to come. While Ashworth and Wilcox will be key players in implementing the new strategy, they will also lean on Chris Vivell, who was brought in as interim director of recruitment after leaving Chelsea.   Manchester United have published their accounts for the first quarter of the financial year They made for stark reading - the club lost £6. 9million in three months in a continuation of a disparate pattern In the era of financial fair play, finding another Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho is priceless Vivell is best known within football for his time within the Red Bull group, where the emphasis was also on youth. He took the credit for bringing Erling Haaland to Red Bull Salzburg in 2019, when others – including United – looked the other way. Vivell and the rest are currently assessing the club's scouting network and Amorim will get his say in any next steps as they seek to squeeze bang for their bucks. The Portuguese has also been charged with overseeing an upturn in form and performance from what is widely viewed as an underperforming group. The view among many within the club is that the talent level within the existing squad is not that of a team which should be 12th in the Premier League, having scored as many goals as it has conceded. While there is an acceptance that there have been misses, such as the ludicrous £85m spent on one-foot, one-trick Antony, there is also a belief that the best is yet to come from the likes of Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund, while excitement remains over 19-year-old centre back Leny Yoro, who is yet to make his debut following his £52m arrival from Lille in the summer. When all are fit, Amorim may well often have the personnel needed to fit his 3-4-3 at a level that could put United back in contention for a Champions League spot, without the major surgery that the club cannot afford. While the aim is to win trophies, qualifying for Europe's top competition this season in itself would be some achievement. The current of absence of Champions League football has also been laid bare in the figures. While United benefit from paying their players less for being in the Europa League, that saving pales into insignificance when compared to lost revenues. The latest figures show a drop in commercial, broadcasting (by 20 per cent) and matchday incomes. While football, with all its raw emotion, cannot be viewed as any other business, balance sheets are balance sheets. There are few companies that can consistently blow £100m after £100m and continue to do so for long. Ratcliffe and his group, who are where they are thanks to their business acumen, are well aware of this. There is excitement around 19-year-old Leny Yoro signed from Lille last summer for £52m Sir Jim Ratcliffe knows there are few companies able to consistently blow £100m after £100m They have already undergone a series of cost-cutting measures. As Mail Sport revealed, 250 staff were made redundant. However, in the short term, that comes with a cost. Those who departed were due redundancy packages, which have come in at no less than £8. 6m. The view is that those measures will eventually result in £40m to £45m a year savings and are therefore worth the pain. Should that be the case, it is money that will be redirected towards the first team that simply is not there at the moment. Such is the importance of that exercise that chief executive Omar Berrada, who presumably never had this problem across Manchester, was moved to comment on them in the release of the figures.   'Our cost and headcount reductions remain on track, ' he said. Berrada also hailed the arrival of Amorim, whom he added was at the heart of their commitment to 'return Manchester United to the top of domestic and European football'. Amorim has already set about his task with relish. According to witnesses, his impact and connection with the first team squad has been almost instantaneous. There is a warmth that has not been seen for some time and, at 39, he is viewed as relatable. He has been described as 'chalk and cheese' compared with some of those who have gone before him. It was noticeable in the late stages of Erik ten Hag's reign that days often tended to feel like a series of battles. While there is the traditional new manager bounce, Amorim's arrival has had an instantaneously uplifting effect. There have also been glimpses of his charisma to the public, not least at his opening press conference. There are also positive signs elsewhere that it would be easy to forget given United's barren run which has now stretched beyond a decade – indeed there are children in the city and beyond now in secondary school who have only known the noisy neighbours as the ones who win the trophies. Omar Berrada (third front left) hailed the arrival of Amorim, who is at the heart of their commitment to return to the top of the pile The new Portuguese head coach has reportedly had an almost instant connection with his squad  It may grate on United fans but the financial transformation of Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp has not gone unnoticed United estimate revenues of £650m to £670m this year, despite all the turmoil and underperformance. At the last count, they had no fewer than 180, 000 fans on a waiting list for season tickets. There is not another club in the country and arguably on the planet that can boast of such a fanbase. It may grate among that support, but the transformation of Liverpool's finances on the back of Jurgen Klopp's revolutionary stint at Anfield has not gone unnoticed at the old enemy. It is very early days but the hope within Old Trafford is that they have the man to oversee a similar change in fortunes. 'Think what those revenues could be if United got to where they should be on the field, ' one source asked. At least now there is a recognition that success on the pitch is at the centre of everything. That has not always been the case with one former exec making a habit of criticising the comms team because of negative stories written after the first team limped to another defeat. 'Look at what they're writing because you aren't doing your jobs, ' he would say. Seriously. That job, the biggest in football, now rests on Amorim's shoulders. Today's statement shows that, once again, United's figures do not add up. Amorim's task is to ensure that changes. Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group