Damning stats show how far United have fallen under Amorim, Red Devils are 19th on the list – Athletic

Former Manchester United great Sir Alex Ferguson was a master at changing the narrative of a game through substitutions. Who will forget that infamous night at the Camp Nou, with the Red Devils trailing by a goal until added time. And then substitutes Teddy Sheringham, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer stepped up to create history. Or Federico Macheda bending one into the back of the net in added time to reignite United’s title charge. The 20-time English league champions have gone through a plethora of managers since the great Scotsman retired, but none have come close to recapturing those glory days. United are no longer the same under Ruben Amorim And under Ruben Amorim, the team seems to be drifting further and further away from what made the club great. Fergie time is no more, and under the Portuguese this season, substitutes have hardly made a difference. As revealed by The Athletic, none of Amorim’s subs have scored off the bench this season. In fact, the 20-time English league champions are 19th on the list for impact made by substitutes. They would have been dead last if not for Ayden Heaven’s late assist against Brighton and Hove Albion. #TeamPLF/AGDPtsSub goals & assistsAvg min of first sub 1Brighton (BHA)1424–20+4221350 2Aston Villa (AVL)1420–14+627853 3Sunderland (SUN)1418–14+423756 4Bournemouth (BOU)1421–24-319654 5Arsenal (ARS)1427–7+2033646 6Brentford (BRE)1421–22-119664 7Fulham (FUL)1419–22-317652 8Tottenham (TOT)1423–18+519659 9West Ham (WHU)1416–28-1212658 10Liverpool (LIV)1421–21022558 11Burnley (BUR)1415–28-1310464 12Chelsea (CHE)1425–15+1024447 13Newcastle (NEW)1419–18+119459 14Leeds (LEE)1416–26-1014260 15Man City (MCI)1432–16+1628259 16Nottm Forest (NFO)1414–22-815254 17Wolves (WOL)147–29-222260 18Crystal Palace (CRY)1418–11+723162 19Man Utd (MUN)1422–21+122155 20Everton (EVE)1415–17-221059 Source: Opta The Athletic More often than not, the ex-Sporting CP boss has preferred to tweak things at the back, then switching up top, as Kobbie Mainoo will certify. “Match-changing substitutes feel like a distant memory at Manchester United. Under Ruben Amorim, not a single player has scored off the bench this season. “Amorim does bring on centre-forwards more than any other position, with strikers accounting for 24 per cent of all available substitute minutes. INEOS must be concerned “But his two options there — Zirkzee and the injured £66.4million ($89m) summer signing Benjamin Sesko — are both struggling for form and/or fitness. “Beyond that, he rarely alters his attacking midfielders, instead choosing to freshen up the base of midfield or the wing-backs.” His defensive subs have cost the side points, as seen during the game against Fulham earlier on in the season, or the most recent draw at home against West Ham United. Combine these damning stats with his abysmal league record, and his lack of trust in the academy, and clearly, things are not looking too rosey for the club. Feature image Jan Kruger via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Ayantan Chowdhury After failing to become a professional footballer, Ayantan switched to the next best thing: writing about the greatest football club in the world. He has extensive sports journalism experience, having worked for over 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25