‘They’re in desperate trouble’ – Gary Lineker taken aback by what he’s seen at Man United
Ruben Amorim has been consistently criticised during his time at Manchester United and Gary Lineker is the latest pundit to slam the Portuguese manager.
Man United were beaten 3-1 by Brentford on Saturday (27 September), as their poor start to the season continued.
Bruno Fernandes missed a penalty for the Red Devils, as they failed to win at the Gtech Community Stadium for the fourth season on the bounce.
Despite the result, Amorim still retains the support of the Man United hierarchy and will be given more time to turn things around.
Ruben Amorim’s tactical error made it easy for Brentford
An Igor Thiago brace gave Brentford an early 2-0 lead, before Benjamin Sesko scored his first goal for Man United to halve the deficit.
Fernandes missed the chance to get his side level, as his 76th-minute penalty was saved by Caoimhin Kelleher, before Mathias Jensen secured the three points for the Bees in stoppage time.
During his time in charge at Old Trafford, Amorim has refused to waver from his three-at-the-back system, despite the poor results.
Speaking on the Rest is Football podcast, former England striker Lineker revealed that the 40-year-old’s lack of tactical flexibility means that Man United are predictable and easy to play against.
He said: “Just one long ball over the top and they (Man United) are in desperate trouble. They’re not coming to grips with that system. They’ve not really brought in the players who fit in that system.
“If you play a certain way, and you’re never prepared to change it, and you tell everybody you’re not going to change, then it’s easy to plan to play against it. Everybody knows how you’re going to play. Brentford had their plan.”
Man United reluctant to sack Amorim
It would cost Man United around £12m to sack Amorim, due to the compensation fee, which could be one of the reasons why Ratcliffe hasn’t yet pulled the trigger on his underperforming manager.
Sources say United are reluctant to spend big on sacking Amorim due to profit and sustainability concerns.
This could mean that the former Sporting Lisbon boss may be given longer than he would’ve been to try and turn things around at Old Trafford.
However, if results don’t improve, the hierarchy at United will have no choice but to make a change in the dugout.