Since arriving at Manchester United, Ruben Amorim’s messaging has been constant that the players getting used to a new style will take time and training session, which he hasn’t had.
Ruben Amorim has maintained that once the players get used to the new style, the team will improve but till then, short terms pains for long-term gains is the way to go.
To the casual observer, that made complete sense as Amorim brought a new formation and style to the club but Matthijs de Ligt has rejected those suggestions.
De Ligt has objected to claims that things are much different under Amorim than what they used to be under Erik ten Hag, throwing new light on the state of affairs at Old Trafford.
Matthijs de Ligt compares Ruben Amorim and Erik ten Hag
Besides Amorim’s mastery of the press, sorely needed after Erik ten Hag started frustrating Man Utd fans by his constant talk far removed from reality, there were other changes afoot as well.
Amorim promised an idea to the fans and so far, United have stuck to that philosophy despite falling results and performances to boot.
The mitigating factor has been players learning a new style of play on the job but De Ligt himself seems eager to take that away.
In an interview with MUTV recently, the centre-back rejected suggestions that Amorim’s style of play is much different to Ten Hag, especially the much-talked-about three-at-the-back.
He said: “I think people from the outside are looking into it too much. If you saw our matches this season, it was also with [Erik] ten Hag, we build up always with a three, with Diogo Dalot as an inverted midfielder.
“So, we built up with a three like we do now. We defended high up the pitch with one full-back, so we defended also with a three. With [Ruud] van Nistelrooy it was also the same, we built up with a three.”
Man Utd’s excuses running out
It’s commendable that De Ligt chose to take away a mitigating factor himself but it just thrown new light on the players’ struggles and Amorim’s role in fixing it.
If the players haven’t found much difference in the two styles of play then there should be no reason why they are struggling to take on the instruction.
Either Amorim is right, and the players are struggling to grasp a new system, or De Ligt is right, in which case Amorim will wonder why they are struggling so much.
The players don’t come out looking the best in either scenario and the manager’s method comes into question in one where players don’t feel the difference while the manager says otherwise.
Ultimately, results fix everything and the reason why this is dissected so carefully is because United can’t seem to buy a win right now, regardless of the system being played.
If that happens, nobody would care how many defenders United played with and what system Ten Hag played. That is the sort of questioning they’ll have to get used to until they start winning.
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