Ruben Amorim: Good, Bad, or Too Early of a Hire?

Tyler Stearns |

Manchester United decided to Fire Ten Hag after a historically bad start to the season with eleven points in nine games. He was sacked Monday afternoon, and quickly the Reds decided to go on a coaching search. They lifted Ruud van Nistelrooy from his assistant coach position to head coach, and in his first game as interim manager, they won 5-2 in a cup game. Now, it should be noted that they were playing Leicester's B team with some of their starters and reserves, however, it was an impressive win nonetheless. But after reports earlier in the week, Ruben Amorim was announced as the new head manager for Manchester United. He brings in a 3-4-3 formation, which means three center-backs, two wing-backs, two midfielders, and three attackers. The wing backs move into defense when needed and attack when needed. This means that the midfielders have more central space to cover, and the wingers stay either outside of the box or much more central. Amorim has implemented this style perfectly in the Portuguese League, but it will be interesting to see if he doesn't change his tactics at United, which is something that every coach has done since Sir Alex Ferguson. It is a job with arguably the most amount of scrutiny in football, considering United is the biggest brand in Europe.

Ruben Amorim, Via CNBC

Making a chance in the middle of the year is an interesting move. Understandably, they fired Ten Hag, but to hire a new manager so early in the year is odd. They should have at least waited until December, to see if van Nistelrooy could have saved the ship. If he could have, he would've provided more stability for the club, and given fans a recognizable face considering his tenure as one of their best players in the 2000s. But this isn't to say Amorim isn't a good manager, it's just that United is a hard place to gauge how successful a coach is, and the carousel that has been going on since 2013 isn't the best way to do things.

The issue for United is more the administration and players than anything else. Only this year did the owners decide to invest in players that tended to the manager, as in Ten Hag's ex-Ajax stars. They didn't work out, but they aren't bad either. Amorim can make use of them. He used to coach Manu Ugarte at Sporting just two seasons ago, so he will likely start in a double pivot with Mainoo. His three centrebacks will likely be De Ligt, Martinez, and Maguire (until Yoro comes back). The wing-backs are a tough position for him to fill because there isn't a clear left-footed player that can fill that role on the left. On the right will be Dalot, who is skilled enough and has the work rate to be solid at RWB, but at LWB, with Luke Shaw too injury-prone, they may have to rely on Garnacho to do the job. If not him, then Amad, because the attack will have more striker-esque players than pure attacking wingers. Hojlund will be good on the right because he is left-footed. Zirkzee and Rashford will fill the other two positions, with Rashford likely taking the left side of the attack.

United has the money, the players, and now the manager to have a successful future. It all depends on if the losing, sacking mentality can change. If it can, then Amorim will be a good hire, and if not, then it will be another failed project down the drain.