RUBEN Amorim takes over as Man United manager today with the club in dire need of a strong man at the helm.
The job proved too big for Dutchman Erik ten Hag, who was sacked despite winning two FA Cups.
Now United’s key owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has turned to Portuguese rising star Amorim as the man to revive Utd’s flagging fortunes.
But can the young Sporting Lisbon coach return the Old Trafford club to their former glories?
He certainly made a huge statement when his Sporting side demolished Man City 4-1 in the Champions League.
But Man Utd will be a totally different proposition.
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And Amorim, 39, will need to hit the ground running when he starts the job today to lift the gloom and stamp his authority on the club.
Here are three ways in which Amorim can immediately improve United from day one.
He has a clear tactical identity
One of the biggest issues that Ten Hag had as coach at United was that he very quickly changed and abandoned the key parts of his tactical identity and game model.
When he first arrived in England he was thought of as a counter pressing and possession-orientated coach who wanted his team to play out from the back and dominate teams.
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That was never quite the reality at Old Trafford, however.
And one of the biggest issues that we saw from the side under Ten Hag was that they never really excelled in any one aspect of the team.
That will certainly not be the case under Amorim.
It seems almost certain that the Portuguese coach will bring his 3-4-3 structure to Old Trafford with him.
He likes his teams to play through the thirds and to dominate possession when moving the ball out from the back.
One of the biggest issues that he may have in the first few months at Old Trafford, however, may well be the lack of three central defenders who are capable of playing the way that he wants.
We are likely to see Lisandro Martinez and Matthijs de Ligt as two of them but the third central defender may well be one of Jonny Evans or Harry Maguire.
Or £52million summer signing Leny Yoro could fill in when he returns from injury.
Yoro, 18, was sidelined after sustaining a metatarsal injury during the pre-season friendly against Arsenal but could be in contention to face Ipswich on November 24.
The three central defenders provide the base and in deeper positions the two central midfielders will stay relatively close to help move through the press.
The wingbacks are encouraged to play high while the attacking midfielders come inside to play almost as two No 10’s behind the main striker.
The roles of the players in Amorim’s 3-4-3 are very clear.
Under Amorim’s leadership, United be well coached and aware of their individual roles in the team.
The three central defenders all have to be comfortable in possession but also adept at defending in 1v1 battles.
The wingbacks are encouraged to play higher and to act more as midfielders or even wingers in possession.
In the initial build-up the two central midfielders sit deep together but as the ball progresses forward they split with one moving higher and one sitting deeper.
The two advanced midfielders initially stay wide but move inside as Sporting attack into the final third and the striker plays high and holds the line.
These very specific tactical roles would have two immediate benefits for United and their players.
The first is that all players would be absolutely clear in the expectations from the coaching staff.
The second regards recruitment, as the profiles of players that United need to sign would be very specific and clear.
This is a marked improvement on Ten Hag’s confused coaching and United’s short-term transfer strategy.
Central overloads in the attack
One key change that we could well see at United is an emphasis on creating a lot of overloads in the centre of the final third.
This comes with looking to break the opposition down through quick combinations in that area.
One of the biggest problems that we had consistently seen from United under Ten Hag was that there was no clear way that they intended to create opportunities in the final third.
Amorim is a coach who will come in and immediately improve United both in the attacking and defensive phases of the game
Often it seemed as though United were relying on a shot from range from Bruno Fernandes or the likes of Marcus Rashford or Alejandro Garnacho to show a moment of magic and create a shooting opportunity.
Amorim, however, wants his teams to be more structured and well organised as they attack.
The main striker will play high on the shoulder of the last defender and look to make runs to attack space.
This will create space for the two advanced midfielders, and one of the deeper midfielders, to move into advanced spaces and the wingbacks act as wingers.
These movement patterns create overloads and help Sporting CP to break down opposition teams.
This decision to attack through more central overloads, however, has interesting implications for Man United and their current playing squad.
The roles of the two deeper central midfielders would ideally go to Manuel Ugarte, who played under Amorim at Sporting before moving to PSG, and Kobbie Mainoo.
But where would Bruno Fernandes play?
The most likely role for the Portuguese international would be as one of the two advanced midfielders, likely on the right, with one of Rashford or Garnacho playing from the left.
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This positioning for Fernandes as the advanced midfielder would free him up to play more in the attack.
His ability to come inside and receive in the final third in space between the striker and deeper midfielders would then be vital to the team.
Man United would benefit from having a fully structured and well set out plan on how to attack.
Amorim would bring this in immediately.
Amorim will improve United defensively
As well as being a coach with a clear play in the attacking phase Amorim is also a coach who understands how to set his team up in an effective defensive block.
He likes his team to play in a compact central defensive shape that will force the opposition to try to attack down and around the outside.
Given that one of the biggest criticisms that has been labelled at United under Ten Hag was that defensively there were too many gaps, especially in the midfield, that could be exploited by the opposition as they attacked.
This is absolutely an area in which Amorim can come in and improve United almost immediately.
Do not expect to see United under Amorim acting as an aggressive defensive side as he wants his entire team to stay compact behind the ball.
This central defensive block is designed to force the opposition down the outside.
But when the ball is played wide Amorim wants his team to be aggressive in sliding across and becoming tight and compact around the ball.
This creates turnover opportunities and allows Amorim’s teams to regain possession and prevent the attack from breaking through.
United need badly to improve against the ball and, again, crucially Amorim is a coach who has a clear and well thought-out plan of how he wants his teams to defend.
Conclusion
In the end the Erik ten Hag era at United will be best remembered for a number of poor and disjointed performances.
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Amorim is a coach who will come in and immediately improve United both in the attacking and defensive phases of the game.
This would give the current squad a far better chance to be successful in the future, and bring clarity to their transfer strategy.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
