Will Manchester United be sixth time lucky again?

Manchester United moved quickly to sack Erik ten Hag after losing 1-2 to West Ham which made them slip to 14th position in English Premier League, and appointed Ruben Amorim from Sporting in Portugal. Once the decision to sack Erik ten Hag was made the new Management team led by Omar Berrada went to Portugal to speak with Sporting and Ruben to conclude the deal in a swift manner unlike the previous drawn out saga. Amorim will be the sixth permanent Manager of the club after Sir Alex Ferguson, who was the sixth permanent Manager after Sir Matt Busby. Both the appointments are to start working in November. Both ended the duopoly of two stronger teams in their leagues in Scotland and Portugal, with Ferguson's Aberdeen knocking out Celtic and Rangers while Amorim's Sporting won against Benfica and FC Porto. Will Man United be sixth time lucky?

Yes, Amorim will be the first Head Coach of Manchester United and not the Manager as the football structure has changed since the INEOS took minority stake and control of football operations. Head Coach are the reality of modern football now. Like Ferguson ended League drought after 26 years at Manchester United, Amorim won the League in Portugal after 19 year gap. Amorim has been the most sought after coach in Europe after his Sporting team won 2 League Titles and 2 League Cup's since 2020. Amorim was on the shortlist to succeed Thomas Tuchel at Chelsea, Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, both Barcelona and Bayern Munich had him in their list, and he was interviewed by West Ham in the summer which he later described as a 'mistake'.

Amorim's teams thus far have mainly played in 3-4-3 formation with two expansive wing-backs, a position which is lacking in personnel at Manchester United. Mazraoui with his array of skills looks set take one slot but another one is a toss up between Dalot and oft injured Shaw. Garnacho and Amad could also get a mention but not so for Rashford and Anthony whose defensive qualities have been questioned in the past. His line-up could well be Onana(GK), Lindelof, de Ligt, Martinez, Dalot, Ugarte, Casemiro, Mazraoui, Zirkzee, Hojlund, Fernandes. Without Rashford or Garnacho! Or like other previous United managers he will switch to 4-2-3-1 and fail.

In the interim fans have endeared themselves to former striker Ruud van Nistelrooy who looks the part as he handles the media with ease and loops fans at every opportunity. His first game as interim boss was in the Carabao Cup where United beat second string Leicester City 5-2, then drew 1-1 with Chelsea in the League which was a dull encounter, then beat PAOK Salonika in Europa Conference League 2-0  the first victory in Europe in 11 matches and since 1 year! Victory against PAOK was mainly due to solo exploits of Amad Diallo who was again overlooked by Erik ten Hag this season. In the FA Cup competition last year his match winner against Liverpool clearly suggested that Ivorian winger has the appetite to play in big games yet Erik ten Hag made the mistake twice! Amorim has not yet decided on keeping Ruud van Nistelrooy as part of his backroom staff.

Amorim reunites with Manuel Ugarte which might mean he can get the best out of Uruguayan midfielder. Like Erik ten Hag, Amorim also comes from a league considered lower to English Premier League and that leap of standards in competition on all fronts will take some amount of learning. His last home game was against Pep Guardiola's Man City and he won 4-1; an handsome score. His charm, wit and command over several languages including English will lend him a helping hand to navigate through the constant 24x7 pressure of being Man United manager. He considers Jose Mourinho as his mentor and Amorim is being termed as the next 'Special One' from Portugal.

United fans have been very patient and supportive of every Manager. They will embrace the Portuguese more so as it's the first 'call' of new CEO Omar Berrada and his team. Change of Manager was necessitated to save the season, getting the best coach will now help revive the push to top half of the season and target top 6 finish, may be not top 4. Club may need to support the new Manager in the January transfer window. Getting the control of the dressing room will be crucial and as Roy Keane often says they can put the manager 'under the bus'. Achieving a playing style that is evolving with every game will give huge belief to the fans that club is heading in the right direction. His ability to work with youth from the academy and even earn huge profits in transfers while still playing in his style makes Amorim perfect for Manchester United. Boas-vindas Amorim.

Erik ten Hag's future uncertain despite the heroics against Liverpool in FA Cup

Oft overlooked by Erik ten Hag the Ivorian winger Amad Diallo scored an unlikely goal to help United win in 121st minute of extra time in the FA Cup quarter-finals against arch rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford. That 4-3 victory will go down as an all-time FA Cup classic. It's the 10th time that Manchester United have knocked Liverpool off in the world's oldest Cup competition, more than any other team! This match was billed as a 'Judgement Day' for the embattled Dutch coach and he came out victorious. This epic victory should have galvanized the team to finish the season stronger.

That did not happen. United gave one of their worst performances of the season to draw 1-1 at Brentford, lose in 2nd half stoppage time to Chelsea 4-3, drew with both Liverpool and Bournemouth 2-2. That's potentially dropping 8 massive points when United are already 10 points behind 4th place! Realistically United now battle with other two United's in Newcastle and West Ham for the 6th spot and rule out Champions' League football. That will hurt the earnings given the already challenging situation with respect to Profitability and Sustainability Rules and impact the summer transfer activity.

Against Liverpool, Erik ten Hag got the substitutions right and he timed it well. He was always proactive and seemed to think of all options available to him. Yes Liverpool failed to capitalize on their dominance and score. Rashford missed chance after chance until the extra time for 3rd goal, Anthony having a torrid season saved his coach's blushes by scoring the vital equalizer after he came on as a sub to take the match into extra time. Eriksen made a rare appearance after being sidelined by the rise of Kobbie Mainoo. Andre Onana has finally settled in and earning his team points by his crucial saves. Have the team and coach started to believe in one another fully now?

United faced 31 shots against Brentford and 4 hit the bar with McTominay partnering Mainoo in midfield. Erik ten Hag rested Casemiro and introduced Licha Martinez too soon and got injured again, so did Lindelof after Maguire was brought on for Varane. Defensive nightmare. Mason Mount scored his first goal in injury time and team gave away the lead inside 3 minutes. United had 28 shots against Chelsea and lost the lead in stoppage time to concede two goals! Unpardonable. At half time United probably lost Raphael Varane forever with his later claim of concussion as he approaches final 3 months of his contract with United having averaged partly 19 games a season in 3 years. Evans substituting Varane also got injured and had to be subbed. Anthony had a decent game while Rashford was rested for this game.

It was time for Liverpool in the league and United's first half was atrocious to concede 15 shots with their best XI available to them. Credit to Willy Kambwala who displayed no nerves and gave a rousing audition. Kambwala, Mainoo and Garnacho the three teenagers to face the arch rivals. Second half was much better with two pieces of individual brilliance from Fernandes and Mainoo to give United the lead 2-1. Wan-Bissaka was harshly adjudged to give away a penalty. United did dent Liverpool's title hopes. Bournemouth hit United 20 times and took the lead twice but for Fernandes to score twice and deny the seasiders their first double over United. Fans were left to wonder how this team that battled Liverpool in second half can be so flat in the next game. Kambwala's slip is to be ignored but not the decision to not bring either Eriksen or Amrabat on to get more control in the game. Garnacho was tired and Amad was brought on at half time. United were simply battered black and blue by Iraola's side. 

Amrabat who had played for Erik ten Hag earlier surprisingly looks out of depth to play for United. His loan fee is not cheap. Licha Martinez is often injured and forces the hierarchy to get two new centre-backs instead of one. Anthony has not lived to the hype around his massive transfer fee and instead United should have got Victor Osimhen. Reluctance to change the shape of midfield given that both Mount and Eriksen are available to gain more control of games. Persistence with out of form Casemiro. Erik ten Hag will lead United against Coventry City in the FA Cup semifinal but his methods have not yielded a style of play that fans can relate to.

Instead, it's the same old counter attack and relying on moments of individual brilliance to scrape through when the opposition has completely dominated the game. Injuries especially to the back four, Ronaldo/Sancho/Greenwood situations, lack of football structure behind the coaching staff, change of ownership, promoting Garnacho/Mainoo/Kambwala all adds in his defense so does his first trophy the League Cup and second potential FA Cup final in two years. There is however Massimiliano Allegri who had always wanted to coach United and might be available in the summer. That is high profile candidature unlike Potter, Frank, O'Neil and his relaxed attitude might edge the players too. Decision time for INEOS. With the right structure behind him including recruitment, medicine, training etc being setup by Brailsford, Berrada, Ashworth, Wilcox et al the Dutchman might get one final shot to make things right. The on-field evidence has clearly not been convincing.