Ruben Amorim made four changes to the Manchester United starting line upplaceholder image
Ruben Amorim made four changes to the Manchester United starting line up | AFP via Getty Images
Ruben Amorim has yet to see any consistency from his Man Utd team, but what is the biggest problem at Old Trafford?
Manchester United continue to lurch from one problem to the next with the transfer window about to close and doubts continuing to follow Ruben Amorim and his ability to change the club.
Records are being broken for all the wrong reasons and the defeat to Grimsby Town with a strong starting XI is inexcusable. The problem that United have is that ripping everything up and starting again is exactly why the club is in the position that it is currently in. The manager inherited a culmination of several different recruitment plans and, if he left, the next manager would inherit the same problem. Amorim has shown that his teams can play good football and pre-season was encouraging, the players have also shown that they are all more than capable. Which begs the question, what is the problem?
Henry Winter names underlying problem at Man Utd
Writing on X, former journalist of the year Henry Winter reckons that the problems run much deeper than just the manager’s system or needing to sign a player or two: “United’s problem is their culture. There’s been a long erosion of the team-first, individual-second, responsibility-taking ethos of the Busby and Ferguson eras. The image of the current head coach hiding in the dug-out, too nervous to watch the shootout, encapsulated the lack of leadership. Stronger characters are needed. This isn’t new. There’s been a decade of decay from old high standards. It’s a problem that runs far deeper than one manager’s weakness when his players needed to look across from the centre circle and see a figure of defiance, standing there, supporting them, not cowering.
“It’s a problem at United that’s far deeper than Amorim’s rigid 3-4-2-1 that doesn’t suit many of the players, leaves midfield overrun, defence exposed and desecrates the club tradition of flying wingers. It’s a problem deeper than a goalkeeper in Onana who has lost some of his old belief and whose uncertainty under high balls is ruthlessly targeted. United have lost their fear factor, their old aura of authority, so even League Two sides fancy their chances and take them.
“And Grimsby were excellent, showing all their leadership qualities particularly in the shootout. It’s cultural with United. So when players move away, they often flourish: Antony on loan at Betis, McTominay spectacularly at Napoli, and Garnacho will probably be a flying threat again if he escapes (possibly to Chelsea). What’s happening at United is not a story of bad players but bad culture and poor leadership. “
Are United’s problems deeper than just Ruben Amorim and the players?
Winter is right. That he doesn’t touch on Bruno Fernandes’ theatrics when he was bumped prior to missing a penalty against Fulham, and he is the captain. He sets the standards, as does Amorim. These are the individuals who are supposed to take the club forwards. It is an easy and tired comparison, however, there is a reason why Sir Alex Ferguson and Roy Keane are put on a pedestal and used as the metric by which their successors are compared to.
Football has changed in terms of tactics and how managers deal with players, but there is still a fundamental attitude that is needed to be a winner. Signing good players simply isn’t enough. The club being a shambles off the pitch doesn’t help either compared to the stability and clarity of thought at the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal. There is a clear plan which United’s bitter rivals perfectly demonstrated when Arne Slot was given just one new player last season and still won the title. Why? Because he instilled a belief and attitude into his squad and led from the front.
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