December 7th 2024.
Gary Neville is calling on Ruben Amorim to make some crucial decisions and stick to them when it comes to his team selections for Manchester United. This plea comes after United's disappointing 3-2 loss to Nottingham Forest on Saturday, which marks their second consecutive defeat under Amorim's management. It's the first time they've experienced back-to-back losses since Amorim took over from Erik ten Hag as manager, and to make matters worse, it was Forest's first victory at Old Trafford in 30 years.
The game got off to a rough start for United, with Nikola Milenkovic scoring for Forest just two minutes in with a header from a corner. Rasmus Hojlund managed to equalize for United shortly after, but Morgan Gibbs-White quickly reclaimed the lead for Forest with a low shot that Andre Onana should have saved. A mix-up between Onana and Lisandro Martinez then gave Chris Wood the opportunity to score Forest's third goal with a header. Bruno Fernandes managed to pull one back for United in the 61st minute, but it wasn't enough to secure a draw.
Amorim made four changes to the starting line-up after United's 2-0 loss to Arsenal on Wednesday, and he also made five substitutions during the game, including taking off captain Bruno Fernandes. Neville believes that Amorim needs to establish a core group of players for his new-look system and points to Enzo Maresca's approach at Chelsea as an example of consistency. Maresca has been using two separate starting line-ups for Chelsea's Premier League and Conference League campaigns, and this has set a strong benchmark for stability in the team.
Neville made his thoughts known on NBC Sports, saying, "When you keep changing players, when you keep changing your back three, you take five players off, you're basically saying to all of them effectively, because they've obviously been left out of the start of the game, is that you don't trust them." He goes on to mention Ten Hag's tendency to do the same thing a few weeks ago, constantly changing players and the system, resulting in a lack of stability and consistency.
In the game against Forest, United actually had a decent first half, aside from their struggles with defending corners. But two mistakes within the first 10 minutes of the second half changed the course of the game, and Amorim's substitutions only seemed to make things worse. Neville describes the team's performance as "scruffy" and lacking shape. He believes that at least in the first half, they had a structure to their play, but it all fell apart after the changes were made.
The former United defender urges Amorim to trust in his chosen eleven and stick with them, making substitutions only when necessary. He points to Maresca's approach at Chelsea as an example, where he plays a different eleven on the weekend and in midweek, sending a message to the players that there is stability and a clear plan in place. "When you change players all the time, you're almost saying to everybody you're just juggling plates all the time," Neville says, highlighting the importance of consistency and familiarity in building a strong team.
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