What is Ruben Amorim’s new Manchester United formation and how did it work? | OneFootball

Ruben Amorim deviated from his trusted 3-4-3 for the first time as Manchester United manager as he experimented with a new-look system for the Premier League match against Bournemouth.

At first glance, a chaotic 4-4 draw against Andoni Iraola’s side does not suggest that the tweak brought much improvement. But Amorim’s side were far sharper in attack and were a constant danger throughout the game.

Amorim said before kick-off that United will need to “adapt” when Bryan Mbeumo, Amad Diallo and Noussair Mazraoui depart for the Africa Cup of Nations and notably said that his team “need to learn from some mistakes we did in the past”.

Critics of the Portuguese head coach have said he has stayed too attached to his 3-4-3 system since replacing Erik ten Hag last November. It was the system he used to great success at his previous club Sporting Lisbon but it has been ineffective so far at Old Trafford.

Amorim joked in September that not even the Pope could persuade him to change his formation. "This is my job. This is my responsibility. This is my life. So, I will not change that,” he said.

What was different against Bournemouth?

At first and on paper, not much. When the team sheets dropped it looked as if Amorim had named a back three of Leny Yoro, Ayden Heaven and Luke Shaw, with Amad Diallo and Diogo Dalot as the usual wing-backs.

But when the match kicked off, United’s style appeared to be different on the ball. Yoro played as a more traditional right back, with Shaw tucking in to join Heaven and Dalot positioned on the left.

Amad was allowed to push further forward and join Mason Mount, Matheus Cunha and Bruno Fernandes in supporting Bryan Mbeumo. Casemiro was notably the sitting midfielder, as Fernandes pushed forward.

It created something of a 4-1-3-2 formation with Mbeumo and Cunha as the strikers, Amad on the right, Mount on the left and Fernandes at No 10. It became a bit more like 4-4-2 when Bournemouth had the ball.

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Manchester United's Amad Diallo celebrates the opening goal against Bournemouth (Martin Rickett/PA Wire)

How did it look?

First half, good. Second half, not so good.

Manchester United had 17 shots in the first half, the most of any side in the Premier League so far this season, as well as an xG of 2.62.

United led 2-1 at the break but the second half will be remembered as one of the most chaotic in Premier League history, with the points shared in a 4-4 draw.

Overall, though, there appeared to be far more danger and threat to United’s play. And although Bournemouth enjoyed themselves at spells, there was a better balance in Amorim’s team too.

The hosts were able to sustain attacks and looked rampant at times. In the new-look attack, Amad, Mbeumo, Cunha, Fernandes and Mount dovetailed and linked up wonderfully.

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(Getty Images)

"I think it's the best I've seen Manchester United, certainly in the first half, under Amorim,” former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports. Maybe going back to the first game of the season with Arsenal.

"United were fantastic in those first 25 to 30 minutes. It was almost a throwback to Sir Alex Ferguson - fast, attacking football, people being energetic, making runs forward, being positive being on the front foot, winning the ball back early.”

Amad scored the opener and his advanced position allowed him to get on the end of Dalot’s cross after Cunha missed the first contact. The second goal came from a set-piece, with Casemiro’s header, but you can’t say United didn’t deserve to be ahead.

The second half was chaos and Bournemouth exploited United’s defensive vulnerabilities. Amorim’s side have only kept one clean sheet this season and were missing senior centre-backs Matthijs de Ligt and Harry Maguire.

What did Amorim say after full-time?

"A lot of good things, but a lot of things to work. We are not winning games sometimes in the details because it's a back four, back three, back five.

“It's the details that we need to work, understand the momentum of the game. You need to be more clinical, because today against a very good team we create so many chances to win the game."

“We need to focus on the performance today was different from the last two at home. That is also a point that we pay attention to. It's completely different. The result is the same.

“At one point, it's frustrating, but the performance is different.That is the fun part of being a manager - you will try to find solutions with the players that we have.

After the last season, I think we are ready to cope with whatever they present in front of us. Let's move on. We already knew. We had some injuries. All the teams in England had injuries. We will try to find a way to score goals in a different way.”