Manchester United ended their three-game winning streak against Nottingham Forest last weekend. The game ended in a draw, and the Manchester Evening News also published an article to comment. The article wrote that since Guardiola coached Manchester...
Manchester United ended their three-game winning streak against Nottingham Forest last weekend. The game ended in a draw, and the Manchester Evening News also published an article to comment.
The article wrote that since Guardiola coached Manchester City, the English football world has been obsessed with a ball-dominated game style. However, Premier League coaches have changed their tactics this season, with a more direct style of play regaining popularity and reducing possession time also becoming a trend again. Manchester United is one of them, looking to advance from the back to the front as quickly as possible.
In the victory over Sunderland, Manchester United had more possession of the ball, but against Liverpool and Brighton, the Red Devils played very comfortably without having an advantage in possession. Especially against Brighton, Amorim's team was compact and orderly, waiting for the right time to counterattack the opponent.
Facing Nottingham Forest, Manchester United had to become the party in possession of the ball again. In recent weeks, United have been most dangerous when attacking in transition, but Nottingham Forest are looking to do the same. Sean Dyche is known for creating teams that are difficult to beat, often physical and threatening without much possession of the ball.
With Forest willing to sit back, United needed to keep the ball and try to create chances. Unfortunately, they found Nottingham Forest difficult to crack. United were not that fluid in possession and only took the lead in the first half with a goal from a corner kick.
Only five minutes into the second half, Nottingham Forest took the lead. Manchester United knew they needed to break the opponent's defense to gain anything. Amad's wonderful goal helped Manchester United save the game, but in fact, for most of the second half, it was difficult to see that Manchester United had a chance to equalize the score.
From this perspective, the weekend's draw should be seen as a warning to the Red Devils. Today, United are happy to fight back and try to surprise their opponents. However, against teams such as Burnley and West Ham United, the Red Devils need to become a possession-dominant side and find new ways to win.
In these possession-dominated games, Manchester United needs to process the ball faster. When they faced Nottingham Forest, they quickly distributed the ball through Bruno Fernandes, especially with the help of Amad and Mbemo, resulting in a local numerical advantage. Once the tempo of the game slows down, opponents get comfortable, so Amorim's task is to ensure the team maintains a fast tempo.
There is no doubt that Manchester United's performance has improved since October, and they probably would have lost this game against Forest last season. But if United are to become genuine top-four contenders in the Premier League, both this season and in the future, Amorim needs to find a way to win games when he dominates possession.
