{"id":1403707,"date":"2025-10-12T13:35:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-12T12:35:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?post_type=features&p=1403707"},"modified":"2025-10-15T12:54:54","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T11:54:54","slug":"five-changes-ruben-amorim-man-utd-three-years","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/five-changes-ruben-amorim-man-utd-three-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Five things Ruben Amorim must change if he is to stay at Man Utd for three more years"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Manchester United<\/a> co-owner Jim Ratcliffe gave Ruben Amorim a huge vote of confidence this week, insisting he needs three years to prove he’s a ‘great’ coach.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s been almost a year since Amorim arrived at Old Trafford, but to say he’s struggled to turn fortunes around would be a huge understatement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amorim has won just 20 of his 50 matches in charge across all competitions, losing 21 of them and conceding 95 goals at a rate of 1.9 per game. Since Amorim was brought in, United have taken just 37 points from 34 Premier League<\/a> games, with only Spurs<\/a> (36) and West Ham<\/a> (35) taking fewer among ever-present sides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Red Devils finished 15th in the Premier League and lost the Europa League<\/a> final to Tottenham Hotspur last season, meaning there’s no European football in 2025\/26.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Amorim was still backed by a lavish summer spend that saw the likes of Benjamin Sesko, Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo arrive at the club. But little has changed, with United 10th in the table with only three wins from seven, while they exited the EFL Cup<\/a> second round against League Two Grimsby Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But none of that has stopped Ratcliffe from backing Amorim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“He has not had the best of seasons,” he told the Times’ Business podcast<\/a>. “Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years. That’s where I would be.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three years is a long time to give to a manager who, up to now, has shown little sign of turning things around. If anything, things have gotten far worse than they were under Erik ten Hag.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With that in mind, what are the key things Amorim has to do to make sure he gets those three years and, hopefully, more to rebuild the Manchester United empire?<\/p>\n\n\n

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    1. Return to the Champions League (regularly)<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    We’ll start with one of the most obvious goals Amorim needs to achieve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Since Sir Alex Ferguson left Old Trafford in 2013, United have qualified for the Champions League<\/a> on just six occasions, while this is the second time they’ve failed to make Europe altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That simply doesn’t fly at a club like Manchester United.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Red Devils need to return to the Champions League not just once every few years, but consistently. Season in, season out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    They need that for the club and supporters on a spiritual level, but also a financial level, with Champions League money going a long way toward servicing their massive outgoings and providing a platform to further build the squad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Of course, there are some specifics Amorim needs to address to put this team into a position to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    2. Show tactical flexibility<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Amorim has stuck rigidly to his 3-4-2-1 system since arriving at Manchester United, fielding a back-four from the start a grand total of, checks notes, zero times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You can understand why he trusts it so much, given he won two league titles (and gained a medal for a third) and three domestic cups with Sporting CP using that very setup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, it simply hasn’t worked at United so far. Not in the slightest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Red Devils lack mobility in midfield when fielding an ageing Casemiro, often finding themselves overrun in central areas, while they haven’t generated the level of attacking threat that would comfortably offset that concession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    What’s more, some of United’s most effective players feel far more suited to something like a 4-2-3-1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sesko at the point of the attack, with Mbeumo, Cunha and Amad Diallo behind him is a pretty mouth-watering prospect, especially if they’re protected and serviced by the likes of Bruno Fernandes and Casemiro in respective No.8 and No.6 roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Such has been the predictable nature of United’s line-up, opposing managers now know exactly where to hurt them, with their weaknesses exploited ruthlessly on a pretty much weekly basis now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Surely, there has to be room for a little experimentation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    3. Shore up the defence and vastly improve finishing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    As mentioned, United have conceded 1.9 goals per game across all competitions under Amorim, with that only marginally improving to 1.56 in the Premier League.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Time and again, United get punctured through the middle on the break due to a lack of pace, while they’ve also developed an aversion to defending set-pieces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This season, United have conceded a league-high three Premier League goals from counter-attacks, while only three teams have conceded more goals from set-pieces (3) in a trend that is a continuation from last season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    The likes of Mathijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Harry Maguire have shown moments of individual quality at the back, but are yet to form anything resembling a cohesive group. And that’s not been helped by the almost comedic catalogue of errors from Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir behind them — Senne Lammens will hopefully provide some relief here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You can spend all the money you want on forwards, but if you can’t keep the ball out of the net at the other end, it’ll make no difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    4. Vastly improve finishing<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Let’s touch on those forwards for a moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Pre-summer spend, Man Utd underperformed their xG by a whopping 14.66 in 2024\/25, according to Opta, at a rate of 0.39 per game. Only Crystal Palace fared worse with an underperformance of 18.72. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Then, the Red Devils spent over \u00a3200m to bring in Sesko, Cunha and Mbeumo, only for things to get even worse. Much worse, in fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    After just seven games, United have underperformed their xG by 7.02, so effectively a goal per game. They’ve missed 11 of their 17 big chances so far and have a shot conversion rate of just 8.2% — only four sides are worse here, and one of them is bottom-of-the-league Wolves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    These two issues feel like they go hand in hand. United’s forwards know their defence will concede, increasing the pressure on them to deliver goals. That pressure leads to inexplicable misses, which then only places further pressure on the defence to keep the opposition out at the other end. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It’s a doom loop that has felt almost endless for United fans, but Amorim needs to find a way out quickly. Somehow, he needs to inspire confidence in his misfiring forwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The good news here is that United have at least been creating chances this season. That total of 17 big chances is the fourth-highest tally in the Premier League, while they’ve taken more shots (110) and generated more xG (14.02) than any other team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Benjamin Sesko has scored in each of his last two appearances, while Mbeumo got an assist in the 2-0 win over Sunderland before the international break.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There are tentative signs that things are going in the right direction here, but only time will tell if this is a consistent improvement or a fleeting success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    5. Consistently win trophies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Since Ferguson retired, United have won five major trophies: two FA Cups, two EFL Cups and a Europa League — alongside two Community Shields. That’s five trophies in 12 years, which is one fewer than Ferguson won in his final five years at the club (6) if you include the Club World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This barren spell has allowed Liverpool to overtake them on 70 all-time trophies compared to United’s 68, with their arch-rivals supplanting them as England’s most successful club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Most clubs would still dream of the trophy return United have enjoyed in the post-Ferguson era, but United aren’t ‘most clubs’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    While style and Champions League qualification are incredibly important, winning silverware is the ultimate aim. League titles and cup finals are what fans live for, and they’re what players remember at the end of their careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If Amorim is to be a long-term success at Old Trafford, he simply must turn the trophy tap back on, by whatever means necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n

    Read more:<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n