Amorim sack talk unjustified as ‘ambling’ Man Utd star, Rogers cost the Red Devils against Aston Villa
As Ruben Amorim looked on the brink of the sack after Manchester United’s loss against Brentford in September, a key factor behind his exit would have been his blank refusal to adapt to get the best out of his squad.
This same issue contributed to Man Utd‘s damaging 1-0 home loss to 10-man Everton, with his side’s attack held back by the rigid focus on the head coach’s 3-4-3 formation.
However, in recent weeks, Amorim has finally relented, with the tweaks to his formation and playing style bearing fruit for the Red Devils.
The absences of Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui due to the African Cup of Nations, on top of Man Utd’s issues with injuries and suspensions, have somewhat forced Amorim’s hand, but it has seen him proactively find solutions to nullify opponents and maximise the output from the players at his disposal.
There was more evidence of this against in-form Aston Villa, who went into Sunday’s game on a run of nine straight wins in all competitions, as Amorim opted to match Unai Emery’s side with more bodies than usual in the middle of the pitch.
Man Utd supporters would have let out an audible gulp upon seeing Manuel Ugarte in the starting XI against Villa, with the club losing all of the last six Premier League games when the £42m flop has started.
Before the game, we speculated that this could be Ugarte’s final chance to prevent a January transfer, and the declining midfielder, who is desperately poor in possession, failed to take his latest opportunity.
Despite this, Man Utd still won the midfield battle in the first half and dominated against a flat Villa, with Bruno Fernandes, Mason Mount and Matheus Cunha overpowering their opponents.
The two sides exchanged decent chances in the opening ten minutes before Man Utd took control of the game, but it was Aston Villa who took the lead.
It was a goal that really came from nowhere, with man of the moment Morgan Rogers producing his latest of many stunning solo goals.
Rogers left onlookers gushing just from keeping the ball in play with a couple of sublime touches following John McGinn’s well-hit crossfield pass, but he did not stop there. With the help of Leny Yoro, who Gary Neville said was “ambling” in a “big mistake” as he carelessly opted against keeping the Englishman on his weaker left foot, he drifted inside and curled home a sensational effort into the far top corner.
It would have been harsh on Man Utd if they trailed at the break, and they didn’t as Matty Cash was punished for being sloppy, with Patrick Dorgy alert to challenge the right-back and set up Matheus Cunha, who clinically converted past Emiliano Martinez from inside the penalty area.
Amorim cannot be faulted for his role as his changes saw Man Utd get the better of Aston Villa for large portions of the day, though he and his side are hamstrung by key players being unavailable.
Their bench against Aston Villa included two goalkeepers and five youngsters, with their situation worsened by captain Bruno Fernandes appearing to pull his hamstring.
Amorim stuck to his working system as Lisandro Martinez replaced Fernandes in midfield at half time, with Man Utd’s weak bench further evidenced by Joshua Zirkzee and teenager Jack Fletcher being their next two substitutions.
Despite this, the game’s flow after the interval was similar to the first half as Man Utd had the better of the action, though Aston Villa’s great equaliser proved the difference.
Villa are the form team in the Premier League, but they struggled to hit their usual heights against bogey team Man Utd and had to rely on the brilliance of Rogers to get them over the line.
His second goal was never going to be as good as his first, but it was a strong follow-up; he latched onto a loose ball in the penalty area following good play from Ollie Watkins and Youri Tielemans and curled home into the corner of the net via another poor challenge from Yoro.
Man Utd’s push for an equaliser came to no avail as Aston Villa defended strongly, with Rogers’ special brace securing their tenth win in a row that leaves them only three points adrift of the top of the table at Christmas.
In the aftermath of this match, reckless media outlets will try to tell you that this loss has added fresh fuel to the ‘Amorim sack’ conversation, but on this occasion, this would be particularly unjustified.
Actually, Amorim’s decisions contributed to Man Utd besting Aston Villa in every department aside from the scoreline, which warrants praise, not ridicule, given the immense form of the hosts and the sheer lack of options at the head coach’s disposal.
Instead, Rogers and a couple of defensive lapses from Yoro lost the game for Man Utd.
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