The clouds are gathering over Ruben Amorim’s head once again after the latest loss, and he seemed to call out two players in the wake of it.
The 3-1 loss to Brentford continued a trend of “one step forward, two steps back” for Ruben Amorim’s Man Utd, who are yet to win two games in a row under his leadership.
There wasn’t even the mitigating factor of the result not reflecting the performance, because United were clearly outmuscled and outplayed.
Refereeing controversies did ruin the game, but Amorim identified another key issue, and it was impossible to hear him and not know that it was an indirect message for two players.
Ruben Amorim’s message to Patrick Dorgu and Diogo Dalot
Amorim can be criticised for many things, and rightly so, but it is also worth looking at his Sporting squad, understanding what made it tick, and comparing it to United.
The wing-backs were so crucial at Sporting, playing almost as free-flying wingers due to the attacking load they carried.
Geovany Quenda, in particular, became a right-wing-back from a right-winger and spent 90% of the game in the opposition box.
The same role at Old Trafford is being carried out by Patrick Dorgu and Diogo Dalot, and against Brentford, it showed why wing-backs are so important.
Dalot and Dorgu repeatedly found themselves in a position to make an impact, either by carrying the ball in space or crossing it.
On most occasions, the final ball left a lot to be desired, and the sight of the United attack ending with the wing-backs receiving the ball was becoming chronic.
Amorim caught that aspect of play after the game, specifically pointing out, without being prompted, how United’s lack of crossing ability hurt the team in the loss.
He said: “My biggest concern is we didn’t sell a lot in the game in the final third. We miss a lot of crosses.”
Dorgu and Dalot are just a part of the problem
Man Utd fans won’t disagree if Amorim even names Dorgu and Dalot while digging them out, because neither has been good enough in the final third.
However, it’s clear that the duo are just a part of the wider structural problem where the players’ weaknesses are being magnified.
Dorgu and Dalot shouldn’t have that much attacking responsibility because they are not those types of players on the ball.
By the same token, a player like Bruno Fernandes shouldn’t have that much defensive responsibility.
Simply put, Amorim’s system is making the defenders attack and the attackers defend, so it’s no surprise to see both batches of players struggling and looking a lot worse than they are.
Dorgu and Dalot aren’t covering themselves in glory, but they are struggling in a role they shouldn’t be asked to play in the first place.
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