Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has raised a concern, suggesting that Ruben Amorim is too focused on the tactical shape of the team, at the expense of letting his stars play with freedom.
Amorim has endured a mixed start to life at United since his appointment as Erik ten Hag’s replacement late last year.
The team has suffered embarrassing losses, including Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at home against Crystal Palace. On the other hand, there have been some good moments including wins over Manchester City, Arsenal and a 2-2 draw at Anfield against Liverpool.
The players are still struggling to get fully acclimated to the demands of Amorim’s style of play and preferred 3-4-3 formation.
Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debate, Scholes remarked, “When I was playing, I wanted to play with more freedom. I watch football all the time, but I don’t analyse the game as much anymore. Nowadays, with football being so tactical, I feel like the life has been sucked out of the players.”
“I’ve been watching Manchester United the last few weeks, specifically how they’ve been warming up before matches, and I’ve noticed that they’re practising the team shape”
“They’ve got the back five defending the goal, with crosses coming into the box for the forwards to attack and they’ve even started practising set pieces in front of the fans, which just seems odd to me.”
The former England international added, “The warm-up is there to enjoy, having the ball at your feet, practising your touch, but everything is focused on tactics and I’m not sure I’d be able to deal with it, if I was playing.”
Scholes conceded that Amorim’s constant tweaking is down to him trying to find what works for the squad going forward.
However, the 11-time Premier League winner insisted, “Trying to work out the tactical element of football matches doesn’t fascinate me.”
“I want to see good bits of play, defenders firing the ball into the midfield, a winger taking on their full back, so I’m not looking at the tactics, but maybe I should be.”
United are back in action on Friday when they host Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Leicester City in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
Featured image Michael Regan via Getty Images
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Derick Kinoti
Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
