How problems are stacking up for Ruben Amorim at Man United: A formation that isn’t working amid a growing injury crisis, financial issues crippling transfer business… and the first-team star who HAS to be dropped

For Manchester United fans, it already feels like a lifetime ago when Ruben Amorim was appointed head coach and optimism filled the air at Old Trafford. Well, it’s only been four months.

In that time, Amorim has branded his side as ‘maybe the worst in the history of Manchester United’ and has reiterated how ‘hard’ his job is on numerous occasions. It’s fair to say that the air of optimism has dissipated into a pool of pessimism.

Even after scraping past Ipswich, albeit with 10 men, United sit 14th in the Premier League table, level on points with similarly struggling Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham.

Normally, if United were sat near sides such as those, you’d assume things weren’t going too badly. But as you can see by the league position, that’s not the case. Amorim’s eight league defeats in 14 matches in charge is hardly a record to be proud of.

However, in fairness to the Portuguese boss he has had a lot of problems to contend with during his brief, but brutal, spell in the Old Trafford dugout. The unfortunate thing for him is that they only seem to be growing, not going away.

As the issues continue to mount for Amorim and his staff, Mail Sport takes a look at what the biggest obstacles are that he will have to attempt to hurdle in the closing months of the season.

United are 10 points off the European qualification spots and sit in the bottom half of the table

Mail Sport takes a look at the mounting problems that Amorim is faced with at Man United 

Injuries mounting 

It seems to be the story of the season, doesn’t it? Every team but Liverpool has had a crippling amount of injuries that have derailed their season. Isn’t that right, Arsenal fans?

That was a joke, Gunners. Please don’t come for me. Obviously, Arsenal are one of the many teams that have suffered from an overwhelming number of injuries to key players.

The same goes for Manchester United. It feels like the 20-time English champions have been decimated by fitness problems of late, with some of their most important stars on the sidelines.

Amad Diallo is one. The Ivorian winger has been a ray of sunshine in what has been a gloomy season for United, having scored six goals and assisted a further six. The news of his ankle ligament damage two weeks ago has seriously dampened spirits around the club.

Diallo is set to be out for the season, as is start centre-back Lisandro Martinez who suffered an anterior cruciate injury in the defeat at home to Crystal Palace earlier this month. Oh yeah, and don’t forget that Kobbie Mainoo is out for several weeks.

These are all players who you would expect to start for United week in, and week out, even if Amorim does love to rotate his squad game by game. So, their absences are strongly felt and have a huge impact on both morale and quality within the United team.

Mason Mount and Luke Shaw are also long-term absentees, despite only supposedly having short-term injuries initially. However, with their record on the sidelines at United, Amorim is pretty used to having to cope without them.

Lisandro Martinez faces a long spell on the sidelines after injuring his ACL earlier this month

United’s star man this season Amad Diallo is also not set to feature for the rest of the campaign

The formation isn’t working 

One of Manchester United’s main problems under Amorim’s predecessor, Erik ten Hag, was that they lacked identity. Most fans, pundits, and journalists found it hard to explain what Ten Hag’s system actually was.

The same can’t be said with Amorim, his idea is clear. United set up in a 3-4-2-1 formation. They sit with a high line and love holding onto the ball, but the problem is that they do little with it.

A lack of player profiles that suit the system doesn’t exactly help Amorim. However, with United’s financial issues, the probability of them being able to splash the cash on the right players is unlikely.

So, surely it is time for Amorim to be adaptable, right? Well, in short, that is not going to happen, he is sticking to his guns. The United boss has stated several times that he ‘cannot change’ his ideas just because of results. It’s a mantra that Ange Postecoglou also sticks by.

Amorim’s defiance to stick to his principles is admirable, but his players still don’t seem to be sold on his ideas. Mail Sport revealed earlier this month that some players are understood to have discussed among themselves whether a change of plan that is better suited to their style of play may be the best way forward.

United fans may not want to hear this, but maybe, just maybe, their head coach should take a leaf out of Arne Slot’s book. His tactical adaptability has allowed Liverpool to leap every hurdle and comfortably sit on top of the pile.

Amorim hasn’t lost the dressing room yet but questions have been asked of his philosophy

Who does Amorim play in goal? 

Andre Onana has to be dropped, plain and simple. His horrendous blunder that led to Ipswich’s opener at Old Trafford on Wednesday night was surely the final nail in the coffin for the goalkeeper.

Many thought that the Cameroonian had turned a corner at the start of the season, but his errors leading to goals have returned to the fore of late. While his team-mates did bail him out against the Tractor Boys, that has not always been the case.

Just two games prior, Onana was at fault for the only goal of United’s meeting with Tottenham as he palmed Lucas Bergvall’s shot straight into the path of James Maddison to tap home.

Amorim has to make a change in between the sticks, but the problem he has is that both Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton are injured. Maybe he should just go with his 63-year-old goalkeeping coach, Jorge Vital? I mean, he did once brutally suggest he would use him before Marcus Rashford.

The obvious choice would be to use Bayindir, who has never made an appearance in the Premier League, when he is back fit following his string of good displays in cup competitions. The Turkish goalkeeper’s heroic performance away at Arsenal to send United into the FA Cup fourth round will not be forgotten in a hurry.

The 26-year-old is also prone to a mistake or too, though, as seen in a 4-3 defeat away at Spurs in the Carabao Cup in December. So, Amorim’s problems in that department won’t exactly be solved by bringing him in, but it’s surely worth a try.

Andre Onana has made a series of blunders in recent games and it is time for him to be dropped

Altay Bayindir shone against Arsenal in the FA Cup last month but is currently out injured

Shot-shy strikers

As you have probably gathered by now, the problems for Amorim and United are anywhere and everywhere, from back to front. One of the most apparent of the lot is at the top of the pitch.

The fact of the matter is United struggle to score goals. Whether it’s Rasmus Hojlund up top or Joshua Zirkzee, or frankly even both, they just can’t find the back of the net.

Hojlund and Zirkzee have only managed eight shots on target each in the Premier League. I mean, that’s quite appalling. Even centre-back Matthijs de Ligt has managed the same amount.

It may be a good explanation for why the pair of them have only managed five goals between them in the league all season. They rarely ever pull the trigger, so how are they meant to score?

Some of that will be down to the service they get. In United’s draw away at Everton last weekend, Hojlund looked lost at the top of the pitch, he hardly got a kick. He is certainly one who is not suiting Amorim’s system, that’s for sure.

It’s not like they have many other options who can swoop in and save the day, though. 17-year-old Chido Obi could be the answer, but Amorim has only just promoted him to the first-team. 

Rasmus Hojlund has netted only two goals in the Premier League this season, as he struggles for form

Joshua Zirkzee has not fared much better, only managing eight shots on target all campaign

Time to focus on the cups?

Amorim has a bit of a conundrum on his hands, it has to be said. I think it’s fair to say, United’s European qualification hopes via the league are done. It’s hard to see them overhauling the ten-point gap to Bournemouth who currently occupy seventh.

It’s not out of the question, of course. United could miraculously go on a run-of-form that sees them fly up the table before the end of the season. It’s pretty improbable, though.

That means that Amorim now needs to decide whether he should prioritise the FA Cup and Europa League over the Premier League. Trophies are the currency of success in football and they could lead to European qualification too, with the winners of the Europa League granted a pass into next season’s Champions League.

That makes this next week crucial for United’s season. On Sunday, they host Fulham in the fifth Round of the FA Cup before a trip to Spain to face Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Europea League last 16 encounter.

Lose both, and their season is over. But win both, or even just one, then they have something to fight for in the final few months. I mean, who wants their campaign to be a dead rubber as soon as March? Nobody.

United face Fulham in the FA Cup fifth round in which could be a critical game in their season

United then face Real Scoiedad in the Europa League round of 16 in what marks a crucial clash

Dorgu’s three-match ban

As if the injuries to key players were not enough, Amorim is going to have to make do without winter transfer signing Patrick Dorgu after he was shown a straight red card during the win over Ipswich.

Every time you watch the challenge from Dorgu on Omari Hutchinson, it just gets worse. He planted his studs slap bang in the middle of Hutchinson’s shin, so once VAR got involved, the red was inevitable.

The suspension is really poor timing as it comes just when Dorgu was starting to make his mark in the left wing-back role. It’s not exactly a position United are bleed with talent in either, so he will be a real miss.

Amorim will now need to switch up his already unsettled backline again domestically, with Diogo Dalot likely to swap flanks to cover for Dorgu, while Noussair Mazraoui could move to right wing-back. Far from ideal for the United boss.

Financial frailties

Where to start, eh? Man United have made a series of reckless financial moves over the last decade and it has started to catch up with them. A series of short-term loans has left the club with a big pile of money they need to pay back.

Under new minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe, United have made a number of distressing financial moves in an attempt to cut costs as they create more financial wriggle room.

United have made 250 members of staff redundant, and this week announced that 200 more jobs could be at risk as part of savage cuts aimed at bringing financial stability to the club.

Other measures have also been taken. Ratcliffe has sanctioned the removal of free staff meals, trimming Christmas bonuses, slashing the salaries of club ambassadors, and cancelling charitable donations – including the annual £40,000 donation to The Association of Former Manchester United Players.

Under the Glazer family’s ownership of Manchester United,  the club has struggled from a financial perspective (Avram Glazer pictured left) and are now in a deep economic crisis

Since purchasing his stake in the club, Sir Jim Ratcliffe has embarked on a slew of ruthless cost-cutting measures, including making hundreds of employees redundant in Manchester

Mediocrity on the pitch have led to a continuous cycle of loss-making, which in turn brings its challenges when it comes to the market. In short, Amorim will have a very small budget in the summer.

The Portuguese coach may have to dip into the free agent market in order to find what he wants. Maybe Mohamed Salah could make the switch? Obviously, that is another joke. Even if Salah does leave Liverpool, I’m pretty sure Old Trafford is the last place we can expect him to end up.

Players such as Leroy Sane, Jonathan David, and even former Red Devil Angel Gomez, could be up for grabs for free come June 1.

If Amorim wants to generate a pot of money though, senior players may have to be moved on. The likes of Marcus Rashford, who is on loan at Aston Villa, Casemiro, and Christian Eriksen are all on big contracts and may all be shown the door.