December 30th 2024.
Ruben Amorim had a tough night as the boss of Manchester United, as their recent defeat against Newcastle marked their fifth loss in six Premier League games. According to Jamie Carragher, this kind of performance is equivalent to "relegation form". The Red Devils were beaten 2-0 at Old Trafford, as Alexander Isak and Joelinton secured the goals within the first 20 minutes. It was a rough start for United, with the Magpies dominating the opening exchanges.
Although United showed some improvement in the second half, they were unable to turn things around and only managed to stop the bleeding rather than truly bounce back from their disastrous beginning. Carragher pointed the finger at Amorim for his team selection, specifically his decision to play Casemiro and Christian Eriksen in central midfield, despite their lack of speed and agility. The former Liverpool legend also expressed concern that this run of poor results could lead to United being dragged into a relegation battle.
Carragher acknowledged that he had previously discussed the potential issues with Eriksen and Casemiro on his show 18 months ago, placing the blame on the manager for putting them in a system where they were unable to keep up with the pace. "These players can't run," he said, "That is on the manager." He also added that this tactic was doomed to fail from the start and that there was no way it could have worked.
The former England defender also criticized United's defense, which he described as "fragile". He expressed his belief that the lack of speed was not limited to just the central midfield position, but could also be seen in the back three and the front three. Carragher felt that it was clear from the beginning that United would struggle against Newcastle, who he described as a team that should not have been afraid of their opponents.
Carragher noted that the recent string of defeats in the month of December has not been seen at United since 1962. He also pointed out that this loss has dropped United to 14th place in the Premier League table, with only a seven-point lead over the relegation zone after Ipswich defeated Chelsea on Monday night. Amorim, who has been under pressure as of late, spoke to Sky Sports after the game and admitted that it was a tough match against a better team. He also mentioned that his players were struggling due to a lack of work behind the positions and the way they were playing, making it difficult to handle tough moments like this one.
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