03 Jan 2026 13:46:44
Rumours today about friction behind the scenes over playing style? And the rigidity of the preferred system.
Add in the latest comments about transfers and it suggests all is not well.
Of course this could be clickbait, bit I think there will be some merit in these rumours.
03 Jan 2026 15:16:51
Good Amorim should be getting a kicking from his bosses.
Playing style is awful.
03 Jan 2026 15:27:09
They’ve known this for ages now, if they expect him to change in any way then more fool them. From where I sit none of them have a clue and look way out of their depth. Maybe the blame game is about to begin!
03 Jan 2026 15:58:44
Here we go again. Might as well just wrap it all up and shut down Manchester United. As it is this hiring sacking hiring sacking cycle isn't taking us anywhere. If the patience is over then so should be this football club.
03 Jan 2026 23:35:59
The embargoed bit from the pre match press conference pretty much confirms these rumours.
Journo asks Amorim why he's changed system, is it because of lack of budget to implement the 3-4-3 or have Wilcox et al had a word because its not been working.
Amorim who hasn't yet met a journalists question that he doesn't want to respond to says he doesn't want to talk about it but that the journalist is smart to observe this.
04 Jan 2026 10:58:50
Excuses and finger pointing from all sides, in reality they are all culpable. The players, coach and those above them.
04 Jan 2026 15:38:12
It's just a typical power struggle. Wilcox and Vivell are sticking their oar in over formation and, in return, Amorim is doing so about recruitment. In reality it's fine for both to do so but it's tense right now while results aren't as good as anyone wants. We're actually in an ok position and with players coming back we should see draws turn into wins.
Too much shaudenfraude here. Utd Road the playing style is not awful. We're creating a lot of chances, and some of the play is very good. We're lacking in some positions and have serious squad deficiencies so of course we aren't fluid or as good as we want to be, but making out as if we're a shambles is very far from reality.
04 Jan 2026 17:18:15
I would say the playing style is awful but Amorim can't play against ten man Everton and show absolutely nothing and follow that up with a several brutal performances and expect unquestioned support in the transfer window. I wouldn't be on Wilcox side either, I think they should both go.
04 Jan 2026 19:24:36
Banjoe what good would that be? We keep just jumping from manager to manager. We finally are addressing the actual issues - that the players aren't good enough - and have done well in the last couple of windows. How about seeing that through for once? There is ample evidence that we're improving. Instead of complaining that we're not consistent or not challengers yet let's stand by the manager.
The question should be "are we improving, and doing so at the rate we expect". At the start of the season most here had us between 4th and 8th and we're currently 5th. Nobody had us in the top 3. We most definitely are on track.
04 Jan 2026 19:54:03
I actually hate this style of play under Amorim. It doesn't feel like United to me, so I'm very happy for him to go but it's not totally his fault. Wilcox and co hired him to implement a system and style and are now not supporting it allegedly. This appointment hasn't worked and I don't believe it ever will.
04 Jan 2026 20:55:09
There’s problems with both sides.
At a club level, they brought in Ashworth to be director of football and implement a club wide playing style. But Berrada and Wilcox are buddies, and wanted Wilcox to have Ashworth’s job. Ratcliffe’s ear was bent by Wilcox because he prefers blaggers who tell him what he wants to hear, rather than professionals who tell the truth. The net result was that Ratcliffe sided with Berrada and Wilcox, leaving the club without a director of football and giving Amorim far more control over playing style.
On Amorim’s part there seems to be an unwillingness to learn. His system worked in one set of circumstances. This does not guarantee that it will work in a completely different league. The fact that he has persisted despite the mounting evidence that it isn’t going to produce winning football for Man United, suggests that he is incapable of adapting. This has been an issue since he arrived, and he has dug in deeper and deeper.
Today’s comments were interesting to say the least. He was explicitly hired as a head coach, not a manager. Yet, claims that he took the job under the belief that he would be a manager rather than a coach. This speaks to the lack of underlying direction regarding play style - i. e. they told Amorim that he would have control over shaping the play style because the DOF resigned. Now that the club directors can no longer ignore the lack of improvement, we’re seeing tension between a coach who thinks he’s a manager, and a leadership team scrambling to rectify their initial mistakes.
The biggest losers are the players and the fans who just want to play/watch winning football.
05 Jan 2026 00:23:25
The style of play isn’t as bad as people make out, we are 2nd in the league for chances created, we are third in the league for goals. There’s been a marked improvement in the offensive output.
One thing to point out is, the club have been inept when it comes to getting the wingbacks required for Amorims system. The offensive output would be even higher if he had the players required for the wingback positions.
Defensively we ship waaaaay to many goals, and the culprit is the midfield, we get unpicked by midfield runners all the time. The midfield has been a problem for years. We need two midfielders ASAP, players with legs, tactical discipline and high energy.
Top four is there for the taking, we need midfield reinforcements to achieve it though. The fact Amorim isn’t getting any suggests to me the board no longer want to back this manager.
I feel for Amorim, he wanted to come at the end of the season but was forced to leave a team flying mid season. Wilcox er Al would have known the hybrid Van Gaal/Mourinho/Ole/Ten Haag Frankenstein squad needed tearing down but they never bought Amorim the players he needs to be a success. A lot of that squad have sacked multiple managers.
Rangnick said it best and his comments look more and more accurate every year.