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The Red Devils' poor recent struggles continued at Elland Road, but manager the Portuguese tactician had his Brazilian forward to thank for his side not suffering even more disappointment against their old rivals.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin headed a first-period effort against the woodwork for the in-form home team before Brenden Aaronson finished superbly with a driven, 62nd-minute shot.

With the goal, the United boss was under intense scrutiny after his side had been held by bottom-of-the-table Wolves at home earlier in the week.

However, against a team who had two days less to prepare, Cunha restored parity three minutes after the opener when he latched onto a through ball from introduced the Dutchman and guided a finish underneath advancing Leeds goalkeeper Lucas Perri.

It was only the South American's fourth goal since his high-profile summer move and came at a time when Amorim is without four key attacking players due to a combination of injury and international duty.

Not that the hosts to sympathise with that given their own tight schedule.

The Swiss attacker forced a full length save out of Manchester United goalkeeper Senne Lammens with a spectacular overhead kick, and United heads were in hands when the Slovenian striker, who is finding it hard to make an impact, turned his teammate's cut-back wide from close range.

The goalscorer, who had a goal ruled out for offside much earlier in the contest, also blasted against a post in the dying moments.

The point prolongs the home side's unbeaten run to seven games, their best such streak since over two decades ago, and takes them a significant margin clear of the drop zone.

For the visitors though, it was yet another opportunity to move into the Champions League places, albeit only for a short time, squandered.

Man Utd Analysis: The Manager's Side Struggle Again

With the Africa Cup of Nations reaching its latter stages, Amorim could be forgiven for hoping the involved countries make a swift exit.

Current injuries to skipper Bruno Fernandes and Three Lions star Mason Mount only exacerbated the impact the unavailability of other forwards is having on the team's options.

It's not that the missing pair are the solution to all of United's problems. After all, they were part of the side that experienced poor results earlier in the season.

But without them, Amorim has few attacking options.

He clearly does not have full faith in youngster Shea Lacey or the much more experienced Joshua Zirkzee, even though the Dutch forward delivered the assist for Cunha's equaliser almost immediately after his arrival as a replacement.

That leaves the Brazilian, who has now scored three goals in recent outings, and others playing out of their preferred positions, alongside Sesko.

On this showing, the big-money frontman looks similar to previous struggling signings, lacking in belief and assurance in front of goal.

Sesko's failure to turn home the cross means it is now nine games without a goal for the new signing.

Leeds United Breakdown: Another Step Towards Safety

After memorable victories in their last few home games, the arrival of their biggest rivals to home was a bit drab affair.

True, there were moments of expected atmosphere, but the intimidating edge was not as evident as in previous fixtures.

The home fans were more preoccupied about their side's inability to get worthwhile possession in advanced areas for any length of time.

The striker's header that clipped the post was an isolated moment of quality in a congested first half.

It still felt as though Leeds were struggling when a mistake opened the door for Aaronson.

For a short moment, Leeds' ecstatic fans thought they were about to secure a rare win against Manchester United.

Nevertheless, there is a wider context for the manager and Leeds to deal with.

When they endured a poor run of form earlier in the campaign, many thought about the manager's future.

In contrast, he is now overseeing significant improvement.

The job is not completed yet but gradually, Leeds are getting nearer to achieving their survival.

Looking Ahead

The Yorkshire club have a Premier League trip to St James' Park in midweek, followed by the start of their FA Cup campaign next weekend. Manchester United face a Premier League trip to Turf Moor before also entering their FA Cup journey with a home tie.