Manchester United started the new year with the kind of resilience and unity that Reuben AmorimA nascent system must flourish for so many years.
Make no mistake, it was a tumultuous decade for the Red Devils, and while the trophy-winning aura remained intact, woven so carefully into the club’s fabric, consistency and the biggest rewards were elusive.
Amorim has produced some results in recent weeks, beating Manchester City in their own backyard, drawing against Liverpool at Anfield and leaving the Emirates with victory in the third round of the FA Cup.
INEOS will no doubt see the potential his shrewd Portuguese offers. However, he should be supported and, more importantly, still allowed to sign right players.
Why Ruben Amorim should be supported at Man United
Amorim has proven through these recent and tentative steps that he has the ability to inspire a Manchester United team that has suffered from a lack of confidence and unity this season.
Spirit is the key word. Etihad, Anfield, Emirates. They are said to be the toughest pitches in English football at the moment, but United have impressed on each of them in recent weeks.
Bruno Fernandes he was the talisman the suit needed, an influential leader. You’d think the former Sporting Lisbon star, who left for Manchester a few months before Amorim’s appointment, would be central to the coming seasons.
2025 will be a big year for INEOS, according to everyone at Old Trafford. Amorim will surely expect support to marry his promising vision. That’s why one should pay attention to the transfer news that concerns United’s interest Goncalo Inacio.
Amorim wants to destroy Sporting
According to the Portuguese edition of A BolaAmorim is interested in a move to his former club for one of Portugal’s respected defenders. It is understood INEOS chiefs have spoken to Inacio’s agent and are ready to make a move, possibly on a loan with an obligation to buy for a fee of €60m (£50m)..
The agent, Miguel Pinho, is also monitoring Fernandes in a connection that could have an impact as Liverpool weigh a move themselves. The left-footed defender would add depth and dynamism to Amorim’s back line.
Most importantly, however, he would fit right in, with his easy ball game just what is needed to create a technical domino effect and spark a resurgence at the Theater of Dreams.
Why Man Utd should sign Goncalo Inacio
First, the obvious reason. Inacio was a tried and tested success in Amorim’s preferred style of play, winning two Liga Portugal titles and two Taça da Liga Cups.
The 23-year-old was described as a high-level distributor by analyst Raj Chohan, who said his “the quality of production is outstanding.” This is imperative for the success of Amorim’s project.
Man United ranked tenth in possession in the Premier League last season with an average of 50.6%, according to FBrefwhile Sporting, who won the title, were the second most dominant team in Portugal in the 2023/24 season. with a retention rate of 59.1%..
Focus transfer
Mega money deals, controversial moves and big name failures. This is the home of transfer news and opinion across the Football FanCast.
Such a metric will move toward the upper end of the chart now that Amorim is in charge, but he needs to put his stamp on the outfit, and Amorim would be instrumental in achieving that.
|
League Stats 24/25 – Goncalo Inacio vs Man Utd CBs |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Statistics (90 each) |
||||
|
Objectives |
0.11 |
0.00 |
0.07 |
0.06 |
|
Assists |
0.22 |
0.00 |
0.00 |
0.06 |
|
Actions to create a shot |
1.99 |
0.89 |
0.35 |
1.39 |
|
Passes attempted |
97.2 |
58.89 |
61.75 |
68.74 |
|
Completion of passage |
90.6% |
86.2% |
91.4% |
89.6% |
|
Progressive additions |
9.50 |
2.78 |
1.86 |
5.92 |
|
Progressive mounts |
2.21 |
0.33 |
0.21 |
1.03 |
|
Ball recovery |
5.52 |
3.00 |
2.62 |
4.41 |
|
Solving |
1.66 |
1.35 |
0.97 |
2.05 |
|
Success of the duel |
49% |
62% |
59% |
55% |
|
Statistics via FBref |
||||
Although Sporting’s centre-back lacks authority and control in the duel, that can be worked on, and with Amorim employing a central defense with three backs, he could sit nicely on that left side, battling Lisandro Martinez for a starting position and perhaps even and working well with him.
As you can also see from the table, Inacio is by far the most expansive and technically expansive defender in possession, tending to make wide shots forward that reach the growing wide players or, say, Fernandes in the centre. It’s actually been praised for its “insane” level of technical quality journalist Antonio Mango.
As for Fernandes, Amorim could reveal that signing Inacio this January would mark his own version of the deal that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer oversaw to sign the Portuguese playmaker back in January 2020. for a fee that rises to £68 million.
Manchester’s Magnifico has been the architect of most of the good things that have come from the red part of the city in recent years, instrumental in winning the Carabao Cup and FA Cup trophies in the last two campaigns.
His debut half-season was a memorable affair for the now 30-year-old scored 12 goals and eight assists in 22 appearances as he enjoyed a 14 game unbeaten run in the Premier League.
It was the boost the club needed, and while Solskjaer’s feel-good project proved to be a fleeting affair, there is little doubt that Amorim has more than a little more tactical sense than the Norwegian coach, capable of bringing a player like Inacio into the team fold to a distinct and lasting success.
The Red Devils have long enjoyed a forged Portuguese connection and that is unlikely to disappear now that Amorim has shown signs of growth at the helm.
The manager’s compatriot, Inacio, isn’t there yet, but he’s still only 23 and has shown so much exciting potential. Just imagine if United fail to show the kind of determination needed in this situation and Liverpool run away in the race.
INEOS must do it, repeating the one-off winter trick of bringing Fernandes to Old Trafford and turning the corner – maybe this time it can be sustained.
