Coach Ruben Amorim's efforts to help Manchester United play the way he wants are facing a major obstacle. The reason is that the club's academy teams continue to use a tactical design that is not in line with Amorim's philosophy.
Amorim admitted that Man United cannot spend to return to the top after missing out on a £100 million revenue from the Champions League.
The "Red Devils" captain is ready to maintain the tradition at Old Trafford, which is to put players from the youth team in the process of rebuilding, similar to the plan he implemented at Sporting Lisbon.
But Man United's youth teams have to play in a 4-3-3 system that Amorim does not trust. And he felt that the task of putting young players in the starting lineup was extremely difficult.
The academy directors at Old Trafford have confirmed that they are still training players who can adapt to all tactical requirements. And Amorim has actually made first-team appearances for young players like Harry Amass and Tyler Fredricson this season.
The Portuguese tactician also brought along Dan Armer, Jaydan Kamason, Godwill Kukonki, Tyler Fletcher, Sekou Kone, Shea Lacey, Jack Moorhouse and Jim Thwaites to the Man United squad for the post-season tour.
However, there are differences between the way United play across their age groups and the way Amorim builds his squad.
Amorim remains loyal to the team's three-man defence and requires full-backs to provide a wide range of attack. That is the philosophy that has created the reputation of Amorim - one of the best coaches in Europe at Braga and Sporting.
Therefore, Amorim has refused to change, despite inheriting a Man United squad that has struggled a lot to meet his requirements.
A source said: "Amorim made it clear when he spoke to Man United about becoming the team's coach. He needs freedom to play the way he played in Portugal. Sporting, like Man United, is known for developing their own talent and their academy also traditionally uses 4-3-3.
But when Amorim became coach, the team also had to switch to a 3-4-3 and 3-4-2-1 formation at the youth level. If you look at how Sporting play in the UEFA Youth League this season, you will see them play with all three teams."
Some of Amorim's problems at Old Trafford reflect the problems he has handled cruelly as Sporting manager for the remaining 11 games of the 2019-20 season. He immediately abandoned the 4-2-3-1 formation used by his predecessor.
Fans-favorite players like Marcos Acuna and Islam Slimani were sold after failing to meet demand, just like Amorim wanted to sell Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho.
A new data-based transfer approach saw Pedro Goncalves, Pedro Porro, Joao Mario, Nuno Santos, Zouhair Feddal and Bruno Tabata arriving that summer to help Amorim fulfill his tactical demands.
The appearance of Matheus Nunes, Eduardo Quaresma, Nuno Mendes, Joelson Fernandes and Tiago Tomas from the youth system also helped Sporting become the Portuguese champion for the first time in 19 years with only 1 loss in the whole season.
Sporting lifted their domestic title again under Amorim last year. They have successfully defended their title this season despite current coach Rui Borges choosing to use a 4-4-2 formation.
When Amorim left the club to move to Manchester, his side had an average of 65% possession in domestic matches.
In his difficult early days at Old Trafford, Amorim often talked about receiving support from the Man United board.
"Of course Amorim wants money to use in the transfer market. But he also needs to be given the freedom to apply the methods he believes in," the source added.
