What will Ruben Amorim Bring to Manchester United?

Ruben Amorim is strongly tipped to succeed Erik Ten Hag as Manchester United manager but what changes will he make and what areas must he address? Here is a list of quick fire points on his potential appointment. 

LIST OF POTENTIAL AREAS WHICH WILL CHANGE UNDER RUBEN AMORIM

▫️Amorim prefers a 3-4-3 in possession formation. A big change from Ten Hag’s preferred set up with a back four. 

▫️Encourages rotation in first phase build up. CCB will push forward into midfield with LCB and RCB wide.

▫️Martinez and Yoro will shine in an Amorim team as ball playing centre backs. Elite ball progression from deep. 

▫️Amorim will use wingbacks in his system - stretching the pitch and the opposition’s back four. This creates space in central areas to take advantage. Bruno Fernandes could thrive in this scenario. 

▫️Could he use Antony as a left wing back given our lack of options in the position?

▫️He likes to use a double pivot in midfield. Amorim deploys a ‘ball winner’ and a ‘box to box’ midfielder in these roles. Could he look to bring Hjulmand with him from Sporting?

▫️The Portuguese manager wants his teams to press high and engage in the final third aggressively to force turnovers.

▫️His teams will regularly go ‘man for man’ and will try to force teams to play on one side of the pitch. They will set pressing traps and often leave one full back free then act upon triggers to attempt to regain possession. 

▫️Hojlund’s output should improve - Amorim has got Gyokeres in superb form at Sporting. Whilst mostly different profiles, they are both tall physical strikers with good positioning in and around the box. Finally Hojlund might get some service but he will also be tasked with running the channels more frequently.

▫️Tactical flexibility will be key particularly in the Premier League and new environment for him. How will he adapt? The Premier League now has so many innovative and dynamic managers that they can figure each other out pretty quickly. It’s how you respond and counter with tactical astuteness what matters. 

▫️Amorim will want United to be versatile on the ball. They will most likely patiently play out from back but he will be more than happy to go direct (over the press) and win the second ball. Onana will definitely not go as direct as he has been lately under Ten Hag!

▫️Amorin will ensure we assemble a very balanced side overall but it may take a few transfer windows to bring in some additional players to suit the system.

▫️Injuries might be a concern for particular personnel - how does Jonny Evans or Harry Maguire play in a back three if the others are unavailable? 

▫️He likes physicality in the midfield. Ugarte and Casemiro good options!

▫️Amorim lowered the average age of the Sporting squad over the four years at the club, promoting many academy players. No doubt he will continue this approach given the abundance of talent at Carrington.