Senne Lammens is not someone who had to wait for Ruben Amorim’s sacking for a first-team chance, but he is still under no illusions about Amorim’s fault at Man Utd.
Despite saving Ruben Amorim in multiple games with his tremendous shot-stopping, Senne Lammens is not someone that the Portuguese manager wanted.
Emi Martinez was his first choice, a move that looks like a bullet dodged now, because Aston Villa would have signed Lammens instead.
Michael Carrick’s arrival has seen Lammens take another step forward, and he has showered praise on the current boss, exposing Amorim’s biggest fault in the process.
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Senne Lammens credits Michael Carrick for Man Utd tactics
Carrick has overseen a miraculous turnaround at Old Trafford with largely the same players Amorim wrote off as not good enough.
There have been suggestions that this is not down to tactical acumen. Instead, he’s just been a fresh voice whose freshness will eventually fade.
However, Lammens strongly disagrees, saying that the biggest thing Carrick has done is to live by the philosophy that the simple answer is often the correct one.
He said [via The Athletic]: “The first thing, from the first day, was his (Carrick) ability to make everything quite clear and (present) a direct message. He didn’t make it too difficult for us or too complicated.”
The above has been clear from day one, as Carrick has done the obvious thing of playing players in their correct positions, for starters.
From there, he has also played his best players with each other, a concept so simple but one that Amorim refused to take on board.
That is why Lammens’ comments following his praise for Carrick are so interesting.
Lammens’ indirect jibe exposes Ruben Amorim’s fault
Amorim ultimately fell on the sword of his system and philosophy, even if that system was hampering his team’s best players.
Ruben Amorim deserves ___ % credit for Michael Carrick’s BRILLIANT start at Man Utd
Fill in the blank. Did Amorim lay the foundation for success at Old Trafford?
Even the players who were doing well, like Bruno Fernandes, were doing so despite the system, not because of it.
Lammens hinted at the same by comparing Carrick to managers who “make a plan too complicated”.
He said: “Sometimes, managers make a plan too complicated, and then some players don’t buy in, and it’s difficult to get on the same level for everyone. But from the first game, it was quite clear what [Carrick] wanted.”
Like the model professional he is, Lammens doesn’t name Amorim, but Man Utd fans can clearly see who the above quotes are hinting towards.
Amorim’s focus on the “system” left the individual behind, while Carrick has struck the perfect balance between the two.
Amorim, by the end of his time at Utd, was almost too smart for his own good, rejecting the obvious solutions to teething problems in the hope of looking like a tactical genius with time.
Unfortunately, his results meant he was never going to get that time.
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