‘It Is Embarrassing’ - Ruben Amorim Gets Rare Support from Former Manchester United Striker

Manchester United coach Ruben Amorim has been blamed for playing a system that is not suited to his players but a former player of the club has come to his defence.

Amorim has employed a 3-4-2-1 formation since his appointment as United boss in November 2024 but with his team struggling to produce positive results, the system has become the point of focus with pundits and fans blaming it for their struggles.

The feeling among Amorim’s critics is that the squad he inherited from Erik ten Hag is not suited for a back three and he has been urged to consider switching to a back four but the Portuguese tactician has remained adamant that he will never change his philosophy, insisting the formation is not the problem.

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Amorim has received the backing of former United striker Michael Owen, who has hit out at fellow pundits for blaming the system when United’s problems run deeper that a team formation.

"They have changed the manager numerous times since Fergie [Sir Alex Ferguson] left. Then they blamed the players; spent billions on players and got some of the best players in the world, only for the club to be seen as a bit of a graveyard for players in the last decade,” Owen said casino.co.uk via the Daily Mail.

"Next it was the people buying the players, so everyone wanted rid of them. Then it was the board, so the board was shuffled around when Sir Jim Ratcliffe got involved. Then it's the fault of the facilities so they wanted to revamp the training ground and put plans in for a new stadium.

"Then it's the staff, so half the backroom staff, physios, doctors, canteen lady, the whole thing, wiped clean and a new start there. The latest one is it’s because they're playing a back-three."

Owen was quick to remind those opposed to Amorim’s way of playing that his predecessor Ten Hag played a back four but was still sacked as the football and results were poor.

"If I'm not wrong, I watched Erik ten Hag about a year ago playing a back-four, and it was some of the most awful football I've ever seen from a Manchester United team," added the former Liverpool striker.

"Some great teams over the years have played with a back-three. I'm not saying that's my favourite formation at all, and I'm not saying that Amorim is right to be steadfast in his beliefs in that formation. But I certainly don't think all of United's problems now are because they play with the back-three.

"It's embarrassing if you're going to say the main reason for the downturn is because they play a back-three. I mean, it really isn't. They could go back to a back-four and play as bad as they did under Ten Hag, then the screams would be equally as loud."

Amorim has overseen 50 games at United and won 20, drawing nine and losing 21, but in the Premier League, he has just 37 points from 34 games, having managed 10 wins, seven draws and 17 losses, which has increased pressure on him.