Gary Neville has said he wants to see Ruben Amorim play football on the front foot for Manchester United and to stop the team playing like “underdogs”.
United’s first game since the sacking of Erik ten Hag saw them draw 1-1 with Chelsea at Old Trafford, confirming their worst start to a Premier League season.
Ruud van Nistelrooy, who was United’s interim manager until Amorim’s arrival on November 11, was unable to help his side get into form as they were held to a dismal draw with the west Londoners.
“This is the worst start to a Premier League season for Manchester United,” Neville said.
“It’s been a miserable 10 games and the performances have been poor. You can’t separate performance from results, so when you look at Ruben Amorim you think about what he needs to do in this job.
“I can’t even think about winning the title. That’s far away. Just think about getting the best out of the players that are here, the players that he’s signing in the future and get the team to play at greater heights. . They look like a more compact unit and similar to other top teams.
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Highlights of the Premier League match between Manchester United and Chelsea
“I’m not just talking about Manchester City, Liverpool or Arsenal, I’m talking about players like Brighton or Tottenham who step up the pitch, look aggressive and get on the front foot.
“We know that Manchester United is a front-line club, a club of attack, attack, attack, but we don’t have that at the moment. It’s really disappointing and we can’t get a new manager in soon enough.”
He added: “The first task is to stop players coming to Manchester United who haven’t achieved the potential they showed before signing because they were fantasizing because other clubs wanted them too.
“So with the players he has inherited – and will be with for the next eight months – he will have to try to get the most out of them and that will be a big task.”
Three key areas Amorim needs to address
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Roy Keane has criticized Manchester United’s players and believes they are ‘a very long way’ from finishing in the Premier League’s top four.
Neville also singled out three key indicators that United need to improve on if Amorim is to stop them playing like “underdogs” and return to a team capable of dominating.
“It was a sobering read about how high Manchester United were playing on the pitch,” Neville said.
“If you look at the average starting distance of teams on the pitch, Manchester City is first, Arsenal second, Liverpool third, Tottenham fourth and Brighton fifth. Manchester United are tenth.
“If you want to push your defense up the pitch like every team does these days, Amorim has to start first because Manchester United often have to travel 70, 80 yards to score a goal, they are too deep and they are the underdogs in the game. Plays like.
“The other indicator was possession in the last third, so possession wins on the pitch. First is Manchester City, second is Tottenham, third is Arsenal, fourth is Liverpool. Manchester United are ninth.
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Watch Super Sunday’s Roy Keane’s best moments as he discusses Manchester United, player mentality, Ruben Amorim’s biggest challenge and more.
“The last thing I asked was which team had the highest turnover. City, Tottenham, Liverpool and Arsenal made up the top four, with Manchester United coming in ninth.”
“These three things are very important to the level of performance.
“Manchester United played like a team sitting behind the ball: ‘Let’s put it on the counter or try to score from a set piece’.
“That has to change. We have to be a team that dominates, and that means dominating the ball in the final third, dominating the forwards and staying high up the pitch.”
Should Amorim keep Ruud as his assistant?
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Roy Keane, Jamie Redknapp and Frank Lampard discuss whether Ruud van Nistelrooy will stay at the club to work under new manager Ruben Amorim.
“I can see why he does it, and I can understand why he doesn’t.” Neville added.
“The reason he does that is because he has a great knowledge of the club and is talented as a coach. He has coached at a high level in the Netherlands. He loves this club and knows it inside out.”
“The reason I don’t do it is because I think Rudd looks good as a coach. The idea of him being on your shoulder… now he’s not that kind of guy, and it doesn’t mean you’re standing on his shoulder waiting for him. He was fired, but he Just the idea that authority and presence are by your side.
“If Amorim is confident in himself, he might say he wants someone who is a serious coach and has real height. That’s an interesting dynamic.
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With Ruben Amorim imminent to join Manchester United, the Saturday Social team decides which players the new manager should keep.
“They might conclude that Rudh is leaving, but Amorim wants him to stay and every day he fails to fulfill his aspirations and ambitions for what he wants to do. This is a really determined and successful person. He wants to do everything 100%. People are perfectionists.
“As an assistant, you know you’re not going to be the main character. He’s going to want to make a serious contribution. And when Amorim says, ‘I coach, my second-in-command does this, my goalkeeper coach does this, I If you think, ‘I want to keep you, but the role is not as complex as you would like,’ it would not be a good situation for Rude.
“He will need a role with some seniority at the club and Amorim will have to give him that role so he wants to stay. Ruud looks like he is on the sidelines, he looks like a manager.”
