Ruben Amorim’s first job must be to make boring Manchester United fun again

RUBEN Amorim was surely watching Manchester United as they drew 1-1 against Chelsea on Sunday, although he might have turned off in boredom. Having scored fewer goals than any other Premier League team besides Crystal Palace and Southampton this season, the Old Trafford outfit aren’t exactly must-watch TV right now.

With Amorim set to arrive later this month, the Portuguese coach has some time to consider how he will reshape United. Discussion has already focused on how the 39-year-old could adopt the back three formation that has worked so well for him at Sporting CP. Analysis has examined which players could thrive under the new manager, and which could struggle.

First and foremost, though, Amorim must make Manchester United fun again. The malaise at Old Trafford is deep-rooted and can be traced back to the moment David Moyes took over from the retiring Sir Alex Ferguson. This was when the power balance at the top of English football shifted and United have identified Amorim as the man to shift it back.

Before that can happen, Amorim must put across his identity as a coach and a personality in a way Erik ten Hag failed. Over two seasons, the Dutchman failed to impose his own ideas on Manchester United and tied himself in knots by making numerous confusing statements in the media.

United’s lack of attacking creativity and cutting edge is what ultimately finished ten Hag. This is a club historically renowned for attacking, cavalier football, but ten Hag’s team were one of the bluntest sides in the Premier League. Chris Wood has scored one fewer goal (eight) than Manchester United have as a team (nine) this season.

Against Chelsea, Manchester United played on the counter-attack. United supporters have become accustomed to seeing away teams dominate matches at Old Trafford, but the lack of attacking cohesion has reached new levels this season. Fernandes, Alejandro Garnacho, Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford have talent as individuals, but there’s no cohesion between them.

🔴📉 Rúben Amorim on Sporting to face Man City: “If the result is negative, the expectations about me will drop…”.

“But if we win, they will think the new Sir Alex Ferguson has arrived!”. ✨ pic.twitter.com/9erHJ5BYSA

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) November 4, 2024

To buy himself more time to turn around the fortunes of one of the biggest clubs in the world, Amorim must take supporters along with him and means his Manchester United team must play a brand of football that compels. Amorim must embolden his attacking players to perform in a way they never did under ten Hag.

Manchester United have spent over a decade looking for a manager to truly succeed Ferguson, but a subtle change in Amorim’s job title suggests they are now taking a different approach. Indeed, Amorim will be a head coach rather than a manager, pointing towards the off-the-field change that has taken place at Old Trafford in 2024.

In Omar Berrada, United have a new CEO. Dan Ashworth is still getting his feet under the desk as sporting director with Jason Wilcox also appointed technical director earlier this year. Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS don’t want a manager with absolute power. They want someone to fit into a larger system and structure. They want a cog in a machine.

This is surely in response to the club’s wasteful transfer activity of recent times. Over £600m was spent on new players during ten Hag’s time as manager with very few success stories. Ten Hag clearly had more influence over transfer strategy than should have been the case and so United have sought to address this.

2024 could prove to be the most pivotal year in Manchester United’s recent history. INEOS have spoken a big game about pushing the club back to the top of English and European football, but the arrival of a new manager will be the purest distillation of that ambition so far. There’s a lot riding on the appointment of Amorim.