There has been much talk about the future of United manager Ruben Amorim, which isn't something new. Even if guy won five in a row, should he lose the sixth, 'Amorim out' will return.
This would at least allow that guy to cut his hair though 🤷♂️.
This was something I was planning to discuss anyway but as per reports yesterday coming out from quite a few outlets, it seems everyone has the same thought that the next three games will determine the future of Ruben Amorim.
And a part of me agrees.
There has also been reports that the board are backing the manager but it really does feel like something they have to say rather than something they truly want to.
It's been a difficult yet conflicting first few games of Amorim's first full season in charge, or supposed full season. He may not even see a year at the helm at Old Trafford at this rate.
On the face of it, losing two (one of which in a bit of a humiliating derby, the other at home to Arsenal), drawing one we should've won, with the only victory coming curtesy of a last-minute penalty by Bruno Fernandes over Burnley at Old Trafford, isn't a great look.
This means just 4 points with 4 goals scored (2 of which have been own goals who happen to be our top scorer 😭), 7 conceded and a position of 14th in the table.
That makes things look even worse 🙃.
On the other hand, the stats would actually say we are one of the better sides. Sorry, couldn't think of a better word than better.
In the league, United are 1st for successful long passes (131), 1st for most shots (52), joint-first for successful crosses from open play (18) and 2nd for xG (8.29). These are just some numbers to indicate that we aren't as bad as league position and points may suggest.
I must also say that simply watching the games, you can see that there is something there with United. There are moments of play that give you encouragement that perhaps there is hope for this side and manager to achieve something.
I'm not big on stats but in this instance, it does show signs of life that United in this system that is highly criticized, are performing relatively well it's just that lack of taking their chances and conceding silly goals that has cost us.
However, those moments of good play are just that, moments, nothing sustainable, and we cannot deny being 14th in the table with just 4 goals scored isn't shite. No point being top of these statistics but almost bottom of the league.
Losing in the derby is unfortunately, not unusual anymore. In fact, losing isn't something unusual anymore 😔. You saw those Amorim numbers in the league. Bottom of the table since he joined is criminal 😬.
More than that defeat though, was the manner of it. While when taking a look at the match stats, you would see that it was an even game. We actually had more possession. Than City! At the Emptyhad! Can you believe it?! May tell you more about them than us, but anyway.
You then look at the goals and you'd see just how poorly defended they were. Bruno, who was partially to blame for the concession of Phil Foden's header (yes, we allowed one of the shortest players on the field to score a free header!), admitted post-match that all 3 goals were avoidable. And they were. It was awful defending.
This loss was so demoralizing that people have stated that the 6-3 defeat in 22/23 was actually better than this!
City didn't have to be that good to win comfortably in the end. I also believe that what potentially makes this latest humiliation by our city rivals worse is how little we've won this season or indeed, under Amorim at all. Pair that with poor performances and it has caused us all to feel tired and fed up.
Yes there's encouragement with what we've seen but when we don't make them count, what's the point?
There are also players who have played terribly with many questioning why they are in the team. A lot of them have also been here for many years which condemns them even further as they've been part of many failed teams.
Oh, and there was the most humiliating of all: losing to Grimsby.
A League Two side DESERVEDLY knocked United out of the Carabao Cup in the second round on penalties after what was a game that made me feel embarrassed to be a United supporter. That is not something I've ever felt before.
This has built up to a point where it feels like there's no turning back for Amorim. Had we had won more games, been more consistent in our performances and seen substantial growth rather than those moments mentioned above, I think a lot of us would've been more forgiving of the manager and team. After all, to be facing Arsenal and City in the opening four games for a side that finished 15th was always going to be difficult for us to get the win.
But we haven't won a lot of games, we haven't played well and we still can't trust these players. Even Amorim is losing trust with some of his selections and substitutions.
With one game a week, we also would've expected much more than what we've seen. Amorim has been speaking about how important and beneficial more time on the training ground could be in order to see a style that makes us happy.
We haven't had that. We are wasting these weeks of training.
I don't even think his formation and approach has to change at all but more the personnel and position of some players. Read my thoughts on the three simple changes Amorim needs to make in order to be a success.
That was a long discussion before actually getting to the point of this post. I tend to do that a lot. I'm doing it again, aren't I?
But it was all neccessary to make the point of why these next three matches are make or break for the Portuguese.
Chelsea (H)
Brentford (A)
Sunderland (H)
This is a very similar set of fixtures to that of the opening three. In Chelsea, we face a potential title challenger (like Arsenal), a mid-table side in Brentford (like Fulham), and a potential relegation candidate in Sunderland (like Burnley). They will all pose different challenges which will test this United side and Amorim in different ways. It means that United won't be able to use the excuse that we are facing the top teams in this run of fixtures.
To be honest though, while we all want to see tiki-taka prime Barcelona football, we just need to get the points. 7 is what I believe should be good enough for the manager to remain in charge by the next international break. However, he could be gone soon after as the first game back is a trip to Anfield 😐.
We'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
However we get 7 (or more) points (if we do) is not important, at least for me. If we can do it playing well, great, but I think we've gotten to that point where we just need the results.
As mentioned in my post on Monday, an approach similar to that of Erik ten Hag in his early days at the club is where Amorim should go. The Dutchman decided to hell with his modern, 'ten Hag ball' and go for something more boring and pragmatic, an approach that allowed him to pick up the wins he needed to buy him some time. He too was in a difficult situation early doors with that opening day loss to Brighton and 4-0 embarrassment at Brentford. This is why he chose to switch things up.
ten Hag got those wins he required and that allowed him and the team to build some confidence and momentum whilst picking up points. He went on a run of four straight wins including two over Liverpool and Arsenal. Amorim has failed to win back-to-back games in almost a year let alone four.
After that 6-3 at City, ten Hag's side then went on a 9-game undefeated streak before a 3-1 loss at Villa ended that run. That was then followed by a 10-game undefeated streak. All of this led us to lifting the Carabao Cup (our first trophy in six years) as well as a 3rd-place finish and Champions League qualification.
I'll be frank with you and tell you that I didn't necessarily like or agree with ten Hag abandoning his principles but as things were pretty bad so early on in his reign, it was clear something needed to change. He did just that and I believe that that is what helped this team build that much-needed confidence and momentum and saw us achieve what we did in that campaign.
I know it isn't ideal to be abandoning your principles but all I'm saying is, abandon it for a time. Just until you get back on your feet and maybe win some confidence from the fans.
It is survival football but that is exactly what he needs to do: survive!
Amorim did state that not only will he not change his formation or approach but also that United will have to "suffer" while he is implementing his style and that "this will take time."
Full quote after his first game in charge (1-1 at Ipswich): "We are going to suffer for a long period. We will try to win games but this will take time.
"We have to risk it a little bit [now] and in the next year we will be better [otherwise] next year at the same stage we will be here with the same problems."
The interesting part is saying 'we'll be here in a year.' I suppose we didn't suffer (or suffer enough) earlier in his reign as manager because we are coming up to a year and there has been little and less improvement, if any.
So, we can see that by his own admission, he is going to change nothing. Some may see that as admirable to sort of 'die on your sword' but if you do want to stay here for the next 20 years, then perhaps a little bit of adaptability will help you achieve that.
What I will say about a potential principle abandonment and going for the counter-attacking approach could do is that we do start to see improved results and performances and everyone would want us to play in this manner, not least a lot of those players. I believe they are more the problem than the manager.
They are untrustworthy, can turn things on and off in an instant and only appear happy when playing this more simple brand of football. This would indicate that they aren't cut out for something more modern that we see with the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea.
It isn't the path we want to go down. We've done so many times before and has ended up with the manager getting sacked anyway. What Amorim is showing even more clearly (not that we couldn't see it before) is that he is exposing a lot of those players for being very basic footballers, ones who are incapable of playing something more technical and on the front-foot. He might not know it himself, but he could be showing us something no other manager has shown us with such clarity before, even if it may come at the cost of his job.
I realize that this is a bit of a contradictory post 😂. I want change but I also don't want those players to get their way. I want Amorim to succeed but not at the cost of completely abandoning his principles.
It's just because it's such a difficult situation we find ourselves in that there are so many issues that need solving. It isn't all down to one thing or person.
But all of this talk about a system change or going for a different style could be useless if the manager doesn't make it past the next three games.
Regardless of whether he stays or goes, the thing that hurts me the most is knowing that Amorim is a much better manager than this. We saw what he did at Sporting. That didn't just happen. He made it happen. If he is to be sacked, I can't help but think that the last two managers have seriously underperformed given their potnetials.
You're better than this Ruben.
What do you make of Amorim's future? Do you agree that he has just the next three games to survive? Or is it just a matter of time?
Ruben Amorim apparently has three games left to save his box | Creator: Carl Recine | Credit: Getty Images Copyright: 2025 Getty Images via Goal