Ruben Amorim’s pragmatic approach with his Manchester United tactical system has been reinforced with a powerful assessment from a world-class coach on football tactics.
The 40-year-old Manchester United manager has been accused of being stubborn for not selling out his beliefs and tactics after implementing his system at Old Trafford.
Ruben Amorim has been unable to avoid his tactical system from being placed well and truly in the spotlight when the Red Devils are on the losing side of matches.
The United head coach found major success with his tactics at Sporting CP in his native homeland before he replaced Erik ten Hag at the Red Devils in 2024.
But Amorim has been able to show ways that his system can evolve by adapting to the demands of English football after the inconsistency of United at times.
Luke Shaw was an example of Amorim’s flexibility after he stepped out of the three-man backline and added support to the midfield in United’s 4-2 win over Brighton.
What Carlo Ancelotti has said about systems shows why Man Utd manager Ruben Amorim has never been as hung up on them
Ruben Amorim staunchly defended his tactical system earlier this season after Manchester United’s sporadic form led to further pressure on his shoulders.
Following United’s 3-1 defeat to Brentford, the former Sporting CP head coach dismissed that his system was the make-or-break factor for his side losing matches.
“My point is, if I look at the games we didn’t win, the most important thing when I watch the game is not that we lost because of the system,” he said in October, as per ESPN.
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Carlo Ancelotti recalled his early experience as a manager and how he had to find ways to acquire the best out of his players by not being too attached to one system.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, he said: “It was a mistake [not to sign at Parma] because [Roberto] Baggio was a fantastic player.
“But after that, I start[ed] to learn when I went to Juventus, that I found [Zinedine] Zidane, [who] was one of the best players of the team, that played number 10.
“And so I start to think to play in [a] different system.”
The 66-year-old Brazil manager added: “And after years, I understood that the system is not the most important part of the job.
“You have to find a system that has to adapt well to the players because the player has to be comfortable in the system.
“You don’t have to put the players in a system that he doesn’t like or to put a player in a position that he doesn’t like.”
Ruben Amorim’s tactics are evolving at Man Utd and Carlo Ancelotti’s stance on football systems speaks volumes
The narrative around Amorim’s tactical system took a turn in October after the Red Devils finally found some footing under the former Sporting CP manager’s approach.
Bryan Mbeumo has been able to play as the right-sided No 10 in the system, while the former Brentford ace can be deployed as a supporting striker if it is necessary.
Matheus Cunha has been used in the left-sided No 10 role, but the ex-Wolves star has shown signs that he is dropping deeper to collect the ball from other players.
Amorim is being versatile in his existing system in ways for it to function more cohesively, with Carlo Ancelotti a powerful advocate for evolving one’s tactics.
“You have to be able to adapt the system to the characteristic[s] of the players,” he told Gary Lineker during his podcast appearance.
“I think that there is no winning system and the system that you put in place has to be evolved by the players.”
There is no denying that the fine tweaks that Amorim has been doing to his system in recent weeks with different United players are showing the evolution in full effect.
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