Manchester United fans can afford to get carried away for a few days after Ruben Amorim’s Sporting thrashed Manchester City in the Champions League.
The result is not getting carried over, the performance or even the tactical setup won’t be replicated here but at a time when the club is struggling massively, Ruben Amorim represents hope.
Sporting’s victory will also help him get buy-in from the players quickly since he has just strengthened his credentials further with the eyes of the world on him.
Amidst all this, one player in the Man Utd squad will be the happiest watching Sporting do one over Manchester City.
Ruben Amorim’s switch to beat Man City is good news for Marcus Rashford
Sporting started the game on the back foot and even that is understating it. They couldn’t get the ball out of their own box as their attempts to pass the ball from the back saw them get caught out repeatedly.
They somehow went into half-time level and in the second half, Amorim switched things up, changed roles for some players, and altered the approach.
He lowered the defensive line, dropped one player back to midfield to help with the press, and left Viktor Gyokeres and Trincao up front to run the channels beyond the last man.
From a 3-4-3, it became a 5-3-2 where balls were played with extreme verticality toward the two forwards in space.
Gyokeres got the last laugh with another hat-trick but it was Trincao’s performance that will delight Marcus Rashford because what allowed him to flourish vs Man City is exactly the skill set Rashford has.
Trincao carried the ball forward in acres of space with direct running and forced City’s defensive line to drop back. Of course, that won’t happen in most games when Sporting (see Man Utd) are up against an opposition that sits back so working in close spaces is still a necessary skill but it was an encouraging sign.
Amorim mixed it up vs Man City
The second-half was so important for Manchester United because it showed Amorim’s ability to change things on the fly and make in-game adjustment which Ten Hag was often criticised for.
That it unleashed a player in a way that is extremely similar to what Rashford is as a player makes it even better because there are doubts over the roles of a number of players in Amorim’s 3-4-3.
It is worth remembering that Amorim didn’t have ready-made wingbacks or No 10s in the Sporting squad either but with clear instructions, he has created a well-functioning unit where every player knows what he’s doing on the pitch.
The second half was the perfect example of that phenomenon and for a team like United, which is crying out for a direction and identity, it bodes well.
For Marcus Rashford, Trincao’s second-half display couldn’t have been better timed.
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