Coach Ruben Amorim's system continues to be a hot topic of discussion at Manchester United. His steadfastness in the 3-defender formation was once considered a weakness, but that could become an advantage for Man United when they face Liverpool this weekend.
The team of coach Arne Slot, who are experiencing a series of 3 consecutive losses, often faces many difficulties when facing teams using a 3-man defense.
This was most clearly shown in the confrontations with Crystal Palace - one of the few Premier League teams that regularly use the 3-defender system. Liverpool have failed to win in their last three meetings, including a penalty defeat in the English Super Cup in August.
Even in the five Premier League wins over teams with three defenses since the start of last season - away to Crystal Palace, Southampton and Burnley, as well as at home to Wolves and West Ham - those were all tense matches, decided by just one goal.
Of course, Man United also made it difficult for Slot's side to hold on to a 2-2 draw in their most recent visit to Anfield in January. They took advantage of the full-backs to create overwhelming power on the two wings in a performance that Gary Neville described as "their best under Amorim".
This time, they will return to Anfield as a lower-ranked team. It is surprising that the "Red Devils" have not won 2 consecutive Premier League matches under Amorim. However, their impressive performances in their most recent away trip showed a clear path for them to follow. And in fact, Man United often play better in big games like this.
In fact, in Premier League games where Man United controlled the ball less than their opponents under Amorim, their winning rate was almost double that of when they had more possession. The failure rate also decreased sharply from 64% to 25%.
Of course, these numbers were somewhat affected by the context of the match. A team that is leading will often give the ball control to the opponent, while the team that is behind tends to push up and hold the ball more to find a way to turn the game around.
However, this trend is not limited to Man United. Since the start of last season, Premier League teams implementing a three-man defence formation have also had lower average possession rates in wins and draws than when they lost. This shows that the practical approach often brings better results to this system.
This reinforces the argument that the three-man defence is a reactive system. It is most effective when used to apply pressure and counterattack quickly with sharp state changes.
Whether that is the right direction for a big club like Man United is still an open question. However, in the context of them preparing to travel to Anfield, this is probably the best opportunity for the "Red Devils" to apply that system to get a positive result.
The match between Liverpool and Man United takes place at 22:30 on October 19 (Vietnam time).
