I think it’s slowly becoming clearer how the Manchester United team will look under Ruben Amorim. We all said we wanted a manager who would instil a distinctive style of play, and the reality is that takes time. If you want a quick turnaround in performances and results, then you hire an adaptable manager who always tweaks and adjusts his team to get the most out the the players they have available or to target the opposition’s weaknesses.
It’s not just the game against Real Sociedad either, that performance has been coming for a couple of weeks now. The team seems to be understanding what they need to do, and are starting to do it more consistently. The players seem more together, there’s more fight, more grit. This can be seen in us coming from behind in a few games recently. Our heads haven’t dropped, but we kept going when the opposition have scored.
I’m not naïve enough to say we’ve turned the corner, but we are starting to see what this team is trying to be. I think it seems to work much better in Europe than in the EPL. I think we are still missing too much physicality and intensity throughout the team to be able to control games like we have seen in some of our European games.
Obviously, this squad still needs a massive turnover, I like this approach when SJR has been the bad guy and publicly said a lot of the squad aren’t good enough. When the owner says that the players must realise that they won’t outlast the owner like they can do with the manager. While Amorim has said it’s down to the players to prove SJR wrong. The players will either listen to the manager, get their heads down and fight or look to move on. Hopefully, this is the start of the cultural shift this club needs. The new owners have shown they are ruthless on and off the pitch. If you aren’t pulling your weight, then you’ll be shown the door.
In terms of the signings made under the new ownership they are showing signs of being part of a more clear plan. Younger and hungrier players with a point to prove, players who can develop and improve. More athletically able players to lift our teams physicality. Players who the physical and mental attributes to fight for the club.
Players like Yoro, Dorgu and Heaven with huge potential. Along with players like MdL, Mazraoui, Zirkzee and Ugarte who are still relatively young, talented but who have been at big clubs and for various reasons it hasn’t quite worked out for them. But you can see they have a fight about them, they want to prove they belong at the top of the game.
While there has also been a big shift towards players being brought in who seem to fit somewhere between the academy and the first team. Players like Kone, Obi and Diego Leon who will need 12-18 months of polishing and adapting in the academy before becoming squad players to add depth and quality to the squad. That way rather than having players like Eriksen or Lindelof sitting on the bench taking a huge wage while barely contributing and only declining in ability. We have young, hungry players who are looking to take first team minutes off of the regular starters, keeping them on their toes. While also having the potential to develop and improve. Maybe they become good enough to be in the first team maybe they prove to be good EPL players who we can move on in a few years time at a profit. That’ll be novel, selling a player and making money rather than a loss.
In recent weeks, Dorgu has shown what a true Amorim wingback can do in this system. Pace, power, and directness from out wide. Stretching the pitch and making space for others to flourish.
Heaven has shown that he is a very capable understudy, someone who could prove to be a bargain. Someone like Branthwaite might be ahead of him in his development, and potentially has a higher ceiling in terms of ability. Yet is he really worth 68.5m more than the 1.5m we paid for Heaven? Higher potential maybe, but then not all potential is achieved. Only very limited minutes so far, but he looks like a very astute signing. Many of us raised an eyebrow when he was signed and given a first team squad number. Maybe we should trust the process a little more.
Bruno has really stepped up as a leader in this team in the past few weeks. He divides opinion, but you’d have to be blind not to acknowledge that he was our best signing of the past decade.
Finally a word for Zirkzee, he has shown great fight and attitude to turn things around from the boos he unfairly received earlier in the season. It shows as fans we can be too quick to judge. Will he prove to ultimately be good enough to be a regular starter for a team challenging for the biggest honours? I still have my doubts, but he is showing himself to be a very good and useful player. Clearly he’s far more suited to playing as one of the inside/ deep forwards rather than leading the line. Especially when he has pace and runners around him. Hopefully, as he grows into the team, his confidence fully returns and we might see him getting a few more goals.
There seems to be a slight break in the clouds and a ray of light is trying to breakthrough. Better days appear to be on the horizon. No doubt there will still be setbacks, poor performances, bad results and challenges. But we seem to have our heading now and we are making way towards more prosperous waters.
Written by Shappy March 15 2025 13:26:09
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