Ruben Amorim has just had his 3rd win in his first 6 matches leading Man United. The 39-year-old strategist's record is neither good nor bad with 3 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw. Among the past opponents, Amorim and his team have not met any big teams. Therefore, the challenge against Man City at Etihad is considered the biggest match, which could mark a turning point in Ruben Amorim's career.
Although Man City are in a bad form (winning only 1/10 of their last matches in all competitions), Amorim knows that his team is not much better. Man United won against Plzen in the Europa League in the middle of the week in a rather difficult scenario, so there is nothing to be too confident about before the away match to the defending champions' home ground.
"I never thought this was the best time to play on equal terms with Manchester City. Manchester United will face a very strong opponent. Instead of thinking about how the opponent will play, we should worry about ourselves first.
Big teams have the ability to overcome difficulties very well, facing many bad scenarios. I think Man City are above Man United in terms of proficiency, style of play and confidence.
Even when they are not in good form, we still have to focus a lot on solving our own shortcomings first. Of course, Man United will have their own plans to achieve the goal but once again, we will have to solve our own problems first" - Ruben Amorim shared cautiously before the Manchester Derby.
When it comes to Man City, Amorim is always cautious in every assessment because although the opponent is seriously weakened, they are the team that owns the Premier League championship series 4 times in a row. Looking at the big picture, Man City has finished first in 6/7 recent seasons. The Etihad team may have lost form but their class is still number 1 in the foggy country.
Although knowing that the opponent is very strong, the team in hand still has many things to improve, but Amorim is not too cautious to the point of being negative. In terms of position, although being an old force, Man United still has many things to be confident about and should not be afraid of the opponent like a weak team against the defending champion.
"This match should have been a match between two big teams, fighting for the championship. Unfortunately, things are not going like that. Therefore, we just treat it as a match against a very strong opponent.
Both teams are struggling at the moment so hopefully in the future it will be more of a Derby. Our aim is simple, to improve every game and win every game. We will try to get 3 points this weekend" - Amorim shared.
