Man United just finished their 6th match under Ruben Amorim with the results of 3 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw. After 6 matches, the Portuguese strategist has not been able to find a satisfactory playing style and starting lineup based on the 3-4-3 formation. Against weak opponent Plzen, Man United even had to struggle to get a 2-1 victory after conceding a goal first.
"Being bad at something is the first step to learning how to get better," this saying is true for Man United when they are playing and editing at the same time. Amorim has seen many current shortcomings but just 3 weeks is not enough to correct everything in the context of the Manchester Derby right in front of him.
It is easy to see that Man United's confidence has improved. There are no more uncontrolled situations when attacked by opponents, even if they are not highly rated teams. The players can make mistakes and waver but are no longer afraid.
Against Plzen in the first half, Amorim's team wanted to speed up the match as much as possible, but the running speed and ability to rotate the ball did not match. There were many times when Plzen actively played tight defense and they were so confident that they could easily attack the opponent's attacks. Man United also failed to make a breakthrough in the first minutes with passes to the back of the home team's defense.
In the first minutes, Joshua Zirkzee had a few bad moves, even losing the ball carelessly. Then, when Amorim pressed the sidelines, everything gradually stabilized. The 39-year-old strategist once said that Manchester United had many situations of ball circulation to the crossbar, the players needed to be more decisive and faster in each pass. Training students to possess such good skills cannot be an immediate matter for Amorim.
The match against Plzen witnessed many small mistakes from the M.U players, in addition to the careless pass that led to Andre Onana's goal. However, for Amorim, it was a mistake that could be corrected. The young coach is very confident that he can help the team improve through each match, without needing a few weeks to make a change.
In addition to improving small things, Amorim also showed fans that the current Man United squad is not perfect. The 39-year-old strategist has not kept the same starting lineup in any match. In the win over Plzen, Amorim made three consecutive changes, with Marcus Rashford coming on for Rasmus Hojlund, Antony coming on for Tyrell Malacia and Mason Mount coming on for Zirkzee. These changes left the home team with no way to approach the "Red Devils" goal.
After that, Amorim brought on Alejandro Garnacho and Manuel Ugarte to replace Diogo Dalot and Casemiro. Each change brought his team closer to a positive result. While Mount has improved his ability to hit directly into the opponent's penalty area, Antony has the ability to stretch the opponent's defense very well. Garnacho is always the explosive force in counter-attacks while Ugarte is very good at blocking the midfield.
The match against Plzen was not a comfortable feeling that lasted from the 1st minute to the 90th minute, but it brought Man United 3 points and 7th place in the Europa League qualifying rankings. No matter how things change, it must be based on the final result and Amorim is gradually showing some positivity.
"The pace of the game has improved. I told the players that we need to move more forward to see how dangerous Man United are.
The team has made appropriate adjustments, and the substitutes have also shown their usefulness when brought on. We not only improve the way we play, but more importantly, we change the result in our favor" - Amorim shared after the match.
