How Amorim's tactics gave Man Utd hope after the 'storm'

Ruben Amorim once predicted "a storm was coming," but perhaps even he didn't anticipate the scale of the tempest in December. Losing six of 11 matches marked the worst start for a Manchester United manager since 1932. However, hope emerged from the most unlikely of places – a gritty draw at Anfield that was more cohesive, more coherent, and more Amorim-esque than any other game under the new boss.

It’s too early to declare the storm over, or whether they are merely in the eye of it – this week’s clarity could be a temporary illusion before United are plunged back into the maelstrom. Regardless, the Red Devils now have a template to follow, and it has arrived just in time. BBC Sport will examine what has changed, and more importantly what hasn't, since the Portuguese coach first arrived at Old Trafford on November 11.

Amorim has overseen nine Premier League games, the same number as Erik ten Hag this season. The pause for the FA Cup third round weekend – and a mouthwatering trip to Arsenal on Sunday – is an ideal moment to assess the new manager’s impact. And the headline numbers are not encouraging. Amorim has won eight points, while Ten Hag won 11. Although United’s average possession has marginally increased (from 53% to 55%), they are performing worse at both ends of the pitch. This aligns with what the eye test suggests.

United have looked somewhat lost and confused in their new 3-4-3 formation, at least in part because they have struggled to press effectively, creating a porous defensive line that has given the impression of a team aimlessly drifting through games, defensively vacant. Comparing the two nine-game periods, United’s high turnovers have fallen from 83 to 56, their pressing sequences from 128 to 100, and their total distance covered from 976.2km to 966.5km. This could be because they do not have the players suited to Amorim’s high-intensity pressing and possession-based football, or that Amorim simply hasn't had enough time to train in order to build fitness and embed patterns of play into muscle memory.

There is a less discussed third reason. Until the 3-0 defeat to Bournemouth on December 22, Amorim changed his back three, midfield pairing, wing-back pairing, and inside forward pairing in every single Premier League game. When there is no time to train, efforts should be made to make games mimic laboratory conditions, but the United players have rarely had the chance to find a rhythm or build connections. Until now. Since the Bournemouth defeat, United’s average changes have dropped from four to three per game, and at Anfield, they named the same back five as the previous Premier League game for the first time under Amorim.

The gaps between Matthijs de Ligt, Harry Maguire, and Lisandro Martinez were reduced, and United’s ability to defend crosses – a major problem in the last few months – noticeably improved. Under Amorim, nine of the 16 (56%) Premier League goals United have conceded have come from crosses, but at Anfield, Liverpool failed to complete a single open-play cross into the box (from 17 attempts) for the second time this season. Consistent selection is undoubtedly the way forward.

That need for stability applies equally to central midfield and the defensive line, with the energy and tenacity of Manuel Ugarte and Kobbie Mainoo the main features of the game against Liverpool, and they now deserve a run in the side. A key problem with Amorim’s 3-4-3 is the space that appears either side of the midfield pairing when the wing-backs are forced to drop back into a 5-2-3, which came to a head in the 2-0 defeat to Newcastle, when Joelinton and Bruno Guimaraes dominated in those spaces, directly leading to two goals. This has been a consistent pattern over the past two months, hence United’s drop in key metrics, indicating a passive or easily breached midfield. However, at Anfield, Mainoo and Ugarte shuttled across the width of the pitch excellently.

They were helped by the wing-backs pushing higher up and Bruno Fernandes dropping deeper into midfield. As with the central defenders, the game at Anfield also suggested that Amorim has begun to address his midfield issues. You wouldn't know it from the first two months, but Amorim prioritizes purposeful possession – direct and vertical football through the thirds when the opportunity arises. But the only player who has enjoyed this stylistic shift so far is Amad Diallo.

Diallo has been directly involved in eight of United’s 11 Premier League goals (three goals, five assists) under the new boss, and since Amorim's first game in charge, only Iliman Ndiaye (25) has completed more dribbles than the Ivorian’s 21. His form has dipped since switching from right wing-back to the number 10 role, but the draw at Anfield again marked a step forward. Prior to the Liverpool game, United had not scored an open-play goal with Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui as wing-backs, but on Sunday, Dalot was far more adventurous in Amorim’s plan to target Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Dalot had the second-most touches of any United player (70), only two fewer than any Liverpool midfielder. He is one of a number of players to benefit from a more direct approach, partly instigated by Fernandes looking for long passes – often blind – forward to launch attacks. Despite creating 21 Premier League chances since Amorim’s arrival, the third most in the league, Fernandes has yet to find his rhythm, often drifting between the number 10 role and central midfield. But in the game against Liverpool, Amorim may have found his future role – a hybrid of the two, dropping deep to plug gaps in midfield while quickly penetrating the lines.

Fernandes finding his place, wing-backs pushing higher, Mainoo and Ugarte injecting dynamism into midfield, and the central defenders forming a partnership – the 2-2 draw at Anfield has the potential to be a significant moment in Amorim’s plan. The storm may not be over, but after a chaotic and disjointed start at Old Trafford, there is finally evidence that a high-intensity, direct, and tactically coherent Manchester United is possible.