The 3-0 victory over Leicester City in round 11 of the Premier League could not help Man United rise to the top half of the rankings. However, they ended Ruud van Nistelrooy's interim tenure with 4 unbeaten matches. Looking at the bigger picture, the gap between the "Red Devils" and the group above is only a few points, if they continue to win, the breakthrough can come immediately.
Nearly 24 hours after Man United's home win over Leicester, the team's new captain - Ruben Amorim landed in Manchester on a private jet with his assistants. The young Portuguese strategist has officially embarked on a new journey with the hope of reviving Man United, which was too miserable under his predecessor Erik ten Hag.
In the next 2 weeks, Amorim will have time to study and implement a new style of play at Man United. Without any matches to test, he needs to take advantage of the personnel who are in good form to make the first steps solid. Two of the players who are playing very well, expected to help Amorim in the early days are Amad Diallo and Manuel Ugarte.
After scoring twice against PAOK to help Man United win the Europa League, Amad continued to be trusted and showed the dynamism that is lacking at Man United at the moment. With the hurricane Amad on the right wing, the "Red Devils" attackers are more confident in finding suitable positions to deploy their attacks. If necessary, the Ivorian striker will play the role of finishing.
It was not until Ten Hag left the team and Van Nistelrooy took over as interim manager that Amad had a chance to prove himself. If Rashford continues to play poorly as he is now, the English striker's position will surely be lost to Garnacho on the left wing. From there, on the opposite wing, Amad will be the one to cover.
If Amorim still decides to use the 3-4-3 formation that was successful at Sporting, Amad could be the chosen factor in the attacking line of 4. Amorim will have to choose factors that can fight independently well so as not to rely too much on counter-attacks. In the current squad of The Red Devils, Amad and Garnacho are 2 stars who can do that.
The match against Leicester was the first time Manuel Ugarte had played a full game all season. The Uruguayan midfielder had a very good performance, covering the pitch from start to finish and always being a solid wall in front of the defense. For the first time in Premier League history, Man United have had a midfielder successfully tackle 8 times in a match like Ugarte.
Thanks to the 23-year-old's bravery, Casemiro was able to play higher and threaten the opponent's goal. Similar to Amad, Ugarte played very well under Van Nistelrooy, making fans confused as to why Ten Hag abandoned these two young stars.
One of the advantages for Ugarte going forward is that he and coach Amorim have worked together at Sporting. The Portuguese coach likes midfielders who can tackle well and consistently in midfield, so Ugarte would be a good fit. When Kobbie Mainoo returns, Amorim could have a dynamic and agile midfield pairing.
Although Van Nistelrooy's tenure was short, he left his successor Amorim with a very impressive momentum. When he was still playing football, Van Gol was a top scorer for Man United. Now, as a coach, he has played the role of creator for Amorim with a squad full of enthusiasm and a lot of potential.
