Ruben Amorim to Man Utd will delight Gary Neville as star player set to lose starting spot

A week in April that began with Ruben Amorim as the leading contender to replace Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager ended with him apologising to Sporting Lisbon and their fans for attending a meeting in London with West Ham prior to them dropping two points against Porto in the race for the Portuguese title.

All’s well that ends well, though. Sporting won Liga Portugal by 10 points, Liverpool are title contenders having instead opted for Arne Slot and West Ham’s Amorim alternative Julen Lopetegui masterminded the victory (with a VAR helping hand) over Manchester United that was the nail in Erik ten Hag’s coffin and put Amorim on the verge of realising his Premier League destiny at Old Trafford.

He has reportedly ‘agreed a deal’ in principle to take permanent charge of United after the INEOS chiefs attempted to convince Amorim that Manchester City are a ‘fading force’; a strange ploy as the main reason they put forward for their rivals’ inevitable downward spiral was that whoever is set take on the poisoned Etihad chalice – Amorim in this instance – could never hope to be as good as Guardiola.

But it looks to have worked. Amorim is indeed ‘convinced’, perhaps because being the Manchester United head coach, despite Ten Hag making it look like The Impossible Job, is actually a very attractive role, particularly for someone with Amorim’s burgeoning standing in world football.

MORE ON THE MANCHESTER UNITED MESS FROM F365
👉 Man Utd bungled every aspect of Ten Hag’s drawn-out exit, up to and including the sacking itself
👉 Ten Hag problem is gone from Manchester United but who will sack INEOS and Ratcliffe?
👉 The ten worst signings Erik ten Hag made at Manchester United sum up incredible waste

Two league titles, three cups and a reputation for trusting in and developing young talent, Amorim is an exciting appointment. There would have been widespread doubts had any of Gareth Southgate, Eddie Howe, Thomas Frank or Graham Potter been handed the reins, with them being better known to fans undoubtedly counting against them in the Give Him Time stakes had they been chosen to replace Ten Hag.

They’re not Winners while Amorim plainly is one, albeit in a league considered at least a rung or two below the Best In The World, and he arrives with an aura courtesy of that success, but also thanks to interest in his services from other top clubs – Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City – that wasn’t there in the alternatives, as well as a perceived ability to manage top players, some of whom could follow him from Sporting to United.

Key to Liverpool cooling their interest in Amorim was his tactical philosophy, chiefly his loyalty to a 3-4-3 formation that will delight Gary Neville, who’s convinced himself that a move to three at the back is the way forward for United.

What Liverpool saw as a lack of flexibility, others – United, apparently – consider a sign of strength and confidence in a style of football that’s reaped rewards, first at Braga and then at Sporting. He’s never wavered and while United fans have endured a period of football with no definable style under Ten Hag, that at the very least looks set to change.

Three centre-backs, two wing-backs and two energetic midfielders behind a front three. That’s how it’s been and looks set to be if Liverpool’s snub is anything to go by.

The obvious question will be where Bruno Fernandes plays in that formation. On the left of the front three is the best bet. Pedro Goncalves has thrived in that role for Sporting and has been described as ‘Bruno Fernandes, with a goal threat’. And although Bruno’s been far from top level this season, the United captain remains the creative fulcrum of the side and has to play.

So what then of Marcus Rashford or Alejandro Garnacho? At least one of the so-called stars looks set to lose their spot, handing Amorim an early opportunity to display the mettle Ten Hag initially showed through ousting Cristiano Ronaldo and Jadon Sancho.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing despite Ten Hag’s ensuing descent into tactical ineptitude and mismanagement of a squad that most would suggest is far better than the performances and results of the last 18 months.

The quality of the players along with the time that will be afforded to him by a fanbase delighted by his appointment over the alternatives and a new leadership group that can’t be seen to have made another mistake having bungled their first summer by handing Ten Hag a new deal and £200m of his players, makes this a lovely job for Amorim to walk into, even before you consider he’s now the head coach of one of the biggest teams in world football.

A good move from United, an excellent opportunity for him but bad news for at least one of the big stars at Old Trafford, who won’t fit into a formation that was a non-negotiable for Amorim while in talks with Liverpool and presumably was when he agreed to become the next manager of Manchester United.