Manchester United were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City on Sunday, leaving Ruben Amorim's squad with just one win from their opening five matches in all competitions
Ruben Amorim is under mounting pressure at Manchester United.
Ruben Amorim is under mounting pressure at Manchester United. (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Manchester United legend Gary Pallister reckons the club's 3-0 drubbing at the hands of neighbours Manchester City on Sunday won't spell immediate doom for Ruben Amorim. The Red Devils were comprehensively outclassed at the Etihad Stadium, with Phil Foden opening the scoring, before Erling Haaland's second-half double rubbed salt into the wounds.
The result leaves United with merely one victory from their opening five fixtures across all competitions. Amorim, who took over from Erik ten Hag 10 months ago, has won just eight of his 31 Premier League outings at the helm - which gives him a dismal 26 per cent win rate.
Mirror Football understands that the Old Trafford boardroom remain committed to backing Amorim and have no intention of wielding the axe. Pallister says that United will show 'patience' with Amorim, but has warned the Portuguese that pressure will intensify should the Red Devils' fortunes fail to improve - and if he also persists with his preferred 3-4-2-1 formation.
Speaking after the derby, Pallister exclusively told The Manchester Evening News, via online betting platform BetWright: "I don't think that it's going to impact his future at the moment. Without [Matheus] Cunha, without Mason Mount... Cunha, I think, brings a bit of personality and character to the team.
"I think Mason was desperate to do well. I think he started [the season] okay. And then we lose them both to injuries. I think there'll be patience.
"Everybody's going to put him under the pump for sticking with the back three. It's not what a lot of teams do. And the longer it goes, and the longer we struggle with it, the more questions are going to be asked."
Gary Pallister hopes that Ruben Amorim can find a winning formula.
Gary Pallister hopes that Ruben Amorim can find a winning formula.
Amorim's success with Sporting Lisbon, winning the Primeira Liga in two of his three full seasons in charge, and his previous work at Braga was what convinced United to appoint the 40-year-old. In Portugal, he was wedded to that three-at-the-back formation and it remains that way at Old Trafford - but to very different results.
Ex-defender Pallister added: "Whether it's in his mindset to think about playing a back four... I'd love to be a fly on the wall in the dressing room to see what the players think about it. Sometimes you can hide behind that.
"I mean, players are players. At the end of the day, you win your battles. It's you against your centre-forward. It's you against the guy in midfield. You win your personal battles.
"And if you do that, the team's probably going to get success. You can. Whether you play a back three or a back four. And the goals we conceded were probably down to individual players' mistakes."