The winners and losers of Amorim’s Man United appointment | OneFootball

Manchester United have announced the appointment of Ruben Amorim as the club’s new head coach with the Portuguese tactician set to officially take up the post on November 11th.

Amorim has signed a two-and-a-half year deal with the Red Devils and arrives with a reputation that has blossomed at Sporting Lisbon. A two-time winner of the Primeira Liga, his attractive and flexible football has won admirers on route to success in the Portuguese capital.

United will hope the up-and-coming coach is the man to revive their faltering fortunes, with the club languishing in 14th in the Premier League table after a dire start to the season under Erik ten Hag.

It promises to be a fascinating watch as Amorim gets to work to restore a fallen giant and we’ve looked at the potential winners and losers of his appointment at Old Trafford.

The potential winners and losers from Ruben Amorim’s appointment at Manchester United

Manuel Ugarte – Winner

There’s little doubt Manuel Ugarte will be relishing a reunion with Amorim in English football. The Uruguayan has failed to live up to expectations since his €60m exit from the Estádio José Alvalade, first with Paris Saint-Germain before a sluggish start in the Premier League.

He barely featured under Ten Hag despite being dubbed the solution to an all-too-often open midfield, though showed encouraging signs in United’s 5-2 win over Leicester in midweek. At his best, Ugarte is a brilliant ball-winner and his final season at Sporting saw the 23-year-old lead the Primeira Liga for tackles won and pass accuracy, and rank second for interceptions and ball recoveries.

Amorim favours a two-man defensive midfield pivot in his preferred system and Ugarte is already well-versed in the demands of the incoming coach. That could greatly accelerate his own adaptation to English football.

Marcus Rashford – Loser

Marcus Rashford has since failed to scale the heights that saw him plunder 30 goals during the 2022/23 season.

After just seven league goals last season, he’s started slowly with one goal in nine appearances this time around.

Amorim’s fluid 3-4-3 formation does not overly use wingers, with the supporting roles behind a central forward often moved narrower. Rashford’s best football has come wide on the left, so will the 27-year-old be able to adapt? It’s one of the big question marks.

Manchester United’s centre-backs – Winners

A collective winner’s group here, with Amorim having settled on a three-man backline ever since his early success at Braga. Harry Maguire has played regularly in a back three for England, while there’s an argument that Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martinez could be better suited to the system. With Leny Yoro and Victor Lindelof also among the current options, there should be more minutes for the centre-back stocks.

Antony – Loser

Like Rashford, Antony faces a nervous wait to see how he fits into the manager’s plans. The Brazilian has been a monumental disappointment since arriving from Ajax, returning just five goals and three assists in the Premier League in almost two-and-a-half seasons at Old Trafford.

Given Erik ten Hag often overlooked Antony, despite having previously worked with the player at Ajax and sanctioning his £87m signing, is an ominous sign.

Rasmus Hojlund – Winner

Rasmus Hojlund has shown enough since moving to Manchester United that he can be the long-term spearhead of the side. The 21-year-old returned 16 goals in all competitions last season, despite often being starved of service.

Hojlund will have been a keen observer of how Amorim has elevated the game of another Scandinavian striker, Viktor Gyokeres. The Sweden international has emerged as one of Europe’s most in-demand forwards since swapping Coventry City for the Primeira Liga, returning 59 goals and 19 assists in 65 appearances for Sporting.

If Amorim can implement the same level of chance creation at Old Trafford, Hojlund could finally have the supply line he craves.

Joshua Zirkzee – Loser

It’s been an underwhelming start for Joshua Zirkzee at Manchester United. A dream debut saw the Dutchman score the winner against Fulham on the opening weekend but his following 13 appearances in a United shirt have been goalless.

Zirkzee himself has admitted he is not a natural centre-forward, labelling himself as ‘9.5’ earlier this season.

“I occasionally drop down to midfield. I don’t do that for myself but to help the team,” he told the Mirror.

“I am what I call a false striker. Not a No 9, not a No 10. I am a 9.5! That’s my game. Maybe I’m a little different than others. But being different is good, right?”

With Amorim favouring a more bustling centre-forward and Zirkzee perhaps lacking the dynamism or cuteness for a role in behind, his role appears unclear.

Read – Five Sporting stars Ruben Amorim could take to Man United

See more – Eight talking points ahead of the Premier League weekend

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