Is Man Utd system talk a ‘red herring’? Will they ‘slap up’ Chelsea?
A litany of bad luck, bad finishing, bad defending and valid excuses have been Manchester United’s undoing this season.
That’s one view; the other is that Ruben Amorim is well out of his depth.
We’re ready to move on now. Watch some Champions League and mail us about Spurs or Arsenal to theeditor@football365.com
Manchester United system talk is ‘red herring’
There has been a lot of chatter about Amorim’s system and whether it can work in the PL. Whilst xG has little tangible value, the fact we sit second in terms of xG does at least show the system works in terms of creating high-quality chances. Tons of frustration and, ultimately, pressure coming from the fact we can’t seem to finish those chances yet but they are there.
Defensively, we have conceded too many. Some of that is down to the attack not taking pressure off the defence – it’s easier to defend a 2 or 3 nil lead than a 1 goal lead. However, looking at the goals we have conceded this is generally not a systemic issue.
– 1 against Arsenal was a foul or GK error depending on your POV (definite foul). We outplayed Arsenal and should have won the game.
– 1 against Fulham, not closing down the cross and poor marking in the middle. Should have been out of sight by HT, including a missed penalty.
– 2 against Burnley, first was just like Fulham goal and cross should have been shut down, second was long throw, pinball and weak GK. Had enough chances to score 427 goals first half.
– City game, lazy defending by Shaw, Yoro wrong side of man for second, Shaw and Maguire poor on ball for third. Well in the game in the first half, missed two 4 yard tap-ins second half and Donnarumma save from Mbeumo. Ended on similar xG but they were clinical in attack and defence.
So a litany of bad luck, bad finishing, bad defending and valid excuses, but the main thing that counts is the scoreline and points. Naturally, he has to start winning football matches or it’s all for nothing. But focusing on the system is a red herring – even the extra man in MF can be mitigated by players on the pitch (times when a WB comes inside, one of the 10s drops deeper, one of the CBs steps in etc – players need to be better at figuring stuff out on the hop).
Chelsea at home next, followed by a tough game at Brentford and a home game vs Sunderland. 7 or 9 points and things start to look a lot better. It’s the hope that kills you.
Garey Vance, MUFC
READ: Is this the team that takes Man Utd back into Europe? With or without Amorim…
Manchester United and the West Wing
In the unbelievably wonderful drama from far too long ago, the West Wing, there was an episode where they were trying to develop an effective missile shield ( bear with me here )
After another failed test the Chief of Staff explains to the President that the test actually succeeded in 9/10 of the metrics they measured. ‘ What was the 10th? ‘ inquired the Pres. ‘ It missed. ‘ came the reply. ‘ Aw, so, so close to a massive success. If only it hadn’t been for that pesky little 10th one…’ smirked the President.
And thus I reach what I hear this morning. Man U higher ups are much impressed by the improvement in key metrics this season. First in shots! Fourth for shots on target! Second for XG by God! And so on and so forth.
Unfortunately that pesky last one is that they are losing most of their games of football – which is, very rudely, the only one people seem interested in.
My point being is that people aren’t bloody fools. Some of them anyway. Some of the time. Since Amorim took over Manchester United are the bottom of all Premier League clubs. Bottom. That’s quite low really.
So skip the lies, damn lies and statistics. He is Out. Of. His. Depth. Ten Hag massively overachieved compared to this guy. And in fact so has every single manager since Ferguson.
Put him out of his misery. Trust me on this, he *will* thank you for it. As will his bank account.
James, Liverpool
In an abusive relationship with Manchester United
This is such an insufficient platform to truthfully reflect my complicated feelings about United, but I’ll try to summarize it into three sections:
1) Ownership with a backbone
I 100% believe that I am seeing something from the new ownership group that we’ve needed since Sir Alex retired; conviction. You can feel free to listen to Luke Shaw or Gary Neville or other fans who have varying opinions on the situation; what you are seeing cannot be easily fixed with a change of manager and formation; we’ve seen this script play out 5 times now; we’ll hang around 3-6th place for a season or two and the whole thing will implode again.
I am bored of the cycle, we need to hurt at this moment in time. This is a sporting institution that has been mishandled for far too long; having an owner who will take their licks in service to a larger vision is important at this moment. They have their lofty target of our first Premier League by 2028 and I’m willing to see how that will play out. They achieve it, lauded as geniuses and if they fail, the level of anger remains the same.
2) 31 points in 31 games
What is the metric we are holding this up to? I won’t be the “win it all” United of 2009 and we certainly can’t be holding it up to the shit show that was November – May of last season. Contextually, it was horrendous up down, left and right and this is our manager’s first summer to clear out the squad; which he has for the most part and we know that we’ll be clearing a glut of players next summer too.
The replacements have been significantly better than what was there before and so a bedding in period should be expected. Do I think we’ll get relegated? No, seen enough so far to say we are a mid table team that can beat other mid-lower table teams and get a couple of results from those above us.
The way I see the current situation, Amorim is part of the chemotherapy regimen to ‘heal’ United’s cancer (sorry for the crude metaphor, have lost a loved one to it and for others who have to, you catch my drift). The decisions he makes on the field can offer us temporary relief, but it doesn’t guarantee that we’re in remission. What will the signs be that we’re on the right track? Lord, if I knew, I’d be a very rich man.
3) Discomfort in the unknown
We live in a society that demands answers without even understanding what questions we should be asking. We, as fans, have been left scrambling looking for solutions so that we can be seen as the reasonable voice in the crowd. Here is my summary as the most reasonableness person in this fanbase; it’s a bit shit at the moment isn’t it? Not being able to will our club into greatness again.
I will always love United; you’ll never be able to take those memories away from me and I’m so happy we live in an age where we can go back and rewatch those moments. But I’m also someone who knows that what it will take to get United back to the top cannot be written out in a one pager. As my loved ones say, it’s the only abusive relationship I will ever be in as i continue looking forward to the next game.
Deluded, we’re gonna slap up Chelsea, Nairobi
It’s all Fergie’s fault
Since 2016 I have been writing in about the fall of man utd.. (well, I sent 4 mails I think on that topic specifically..) 16, 18, 22, 23,
As someone said it was only really Fergie (and the Ex Man City and Pool player Matt Busby..ahh the ironing!) that had any success with manu and as such Its all Fergies fault.. the fall of the ’empire’ can be placed totally at his feet.
Selling your soul to the devil and ruling the game by fear (he may have been quite a good actual man manager aswell… he begrudges….) has come back to haunt them in a hugely and wonderfully spectacular way, that fans of almost every other team in the prem, are loving!
20yrs of domination from 90’s to 2000’s gone, almost the second he left and not to return until after, well…. ‘he leaves’….
Until he pays the piper, or crosses the River Styx and gives his lifeforce back to the devil or whatever happens, then manu will not win the league again in my opinion.
I for one, am hoping that he lives forever…
Hoping Ruben can continue this point per game after 38 games in a full season (rather than just 31 game across 2 seasons) and then get the ultimate reward of relegation.
Biggest team in the world.. (best marketed at the right time.. maybe! Biggest… my arse!)
Al – LFC – Hoping Isak is all that and Wirtz gets in the gym a bit!
What have the Mancunians ever done for us?
I couldn’t agree more with Mick T. Outside of the Fergie years and the Busby years, what have Man U ever really achieved? And here’s another thing that grinds my gears. Leonarda da Vinci. Great painter, my ass. I mean apart from The Last Supper and the Mona Lisa, what did he ever actually do? And don’t get me started on the Beatles. Take away Rubber Soul, The White Album, Abbey Road and Sgt Peppers, and what have you got? Exactly. Big, fat nothing.
Matt Pitt
Is Joao Palhinha the signing of the season?
Palhinha has played five times for Spurs, aside from our match against Bournemouth, he’s been quite brilliant.
It really is such an integral position to get right, that it makes it seem as though everything else improves exponentially. No doubt having a great attacking midfielder and dominant keeper etc etc are vital but watching the way a team operates with the fulcrum role established compared without, it’s night and day.
There are recent, and quite glaring examples, Rodri being an example (or Casemiro for the wrong reasons), where it’s so obviously the player who makes everyone else just that bit better.
Four Four Two had him as the number 1 summer window signing to much confusion, but these early stages, I’d say they have it as close to bang on as possible.
Dan Mallerman
Liverpool did not start last season like a train
There’s some serious retconning of the start of Liverpool’s 2024/25 season in Tickner’s latest missive.
The first four fixtures of last season:
Ipswich 0 – 2 Liverpool
Liverpool 2 – 0 Brentford
Manchester United 0 – 3 Liverpool
Liverpool 0 – 1 Forest
As I recall, there wasn’t exactly a “runaway train feel” – more that Liverpool were quietly, calmly and un-heavy-metal-y dealing with the opposition. It wasn’t until later in the year that they hit their stride.
So yeah, this start does feel a bit different – a bit more chaotic – but let’s not pretend Liverpool were clearly the best side in the league from week one. It wasn’t until the end of week six that they hit 1st, and the end of week 10 that they were never moved from it. And I’d say this season’s fixtures are tougher on paper, too – your mileage may vary.
Both starts left plenty of room for improvement and, judging by last season, I expect that improvement to come soon. Could just do with Kerkez stopping being a fanny.
Nick Glover, Scouser in Brum
Maybe it’s the grief
All of this talk of why Liverpool aren’t at their imperious best may not have anything to do with their new signings bedding in (though clearly that will take time, yes, like all the other teams in the league who have the same issue), but it could have an awful lot to do with the psychological trauma of losing a team-mate a few weeks before the league starts?
It has barely been mentioned but, f*** me, that’s gonna leave an impact for some time yet surely?
David (Current modus operandi of scoring very late goals is not sustainable but, hey, top of the league is best place to solve problems) Molby, Shrewsbury
Stop it with the SA jokes please
No Jokes, short and sweet – can the commentariat please have a moment of class and stop making jokes about SA of children at the expense of players/managers/other commenters. There should be alot that is fair in the discussion of football and the tribalism that comes with it, but the use of expressions that rhyme with bonce, weedo, and the like, trivialise something that I would really hope we all agree just isn’t funny and a subject that shouldn’t be trivialised.
Once again in the comments of an article today, there is an accusation made this morning of someone in such a manner and, I don’t even care if this puts a target on my back like the kid in school who says it’s better for everyone if we listen to the teacher, I think the majority around these parts are capable of so much better.
Harold Hooler
(Agreed – Ed)