Ruben Amorim's plan against Newcastle was football suicide, writes DANNY MURPHY - but here's how the Man United boss can tweak it to stop the rot
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Most matches are won or lost in midfield. Managers have drilled that into players and it’s still the case today. Few teams ask two players to go up against three when they aren’t equipped for the job and don’t get any help, so I found it bizarre Ruben Amorim did it against a side as athletic as Newcastle on Monday night.
![[United's midfield of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen were overrun by the Magpies]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/01/16/93647911-14241573-image-a-22_1735747754167.jpg)
I was at Old Trafford and could see the problem within a few minutes. By the time the Manchester United boss reacted, his team were 2-0 down and it was game over. It was football suicide and unless Amorim changes either his system or the personnel, performances and results aren’t going to change – particularly worrying as United are down in 14th.
![[United have also suffered home defeats to the likes of Bournemouth (pictured) and Nottingham Forest in recent weeks]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/01/15/93647451-14241573-image-a-19_1735746670736.jpg)
We know Amorim’s 3-4-3 worked extremely well for him at Sporting Lisbon but the Premier League is a ruthless place. Only one team has won the title here playing that way and Antonio Conte’s Chelsea were blessed in having outstanding holding midfielders Nemanja Matic and N’Golo Kante – who did the running of two players – and Eden Hazard, who made sure opponents were often more worried about him than going on the front foot themselves. United have none of those assets.
![[Toby Collyer, 20, has made one Premier League appearance for the Red Devils this term]](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2025/01/01/16/93647673-14241573-Twenty_year_old_Toby_Collyer_has_made_one_Premier_League_appeara-m-35_1735747995498.jpg)
Ruben Amorim has come in for criticism for his set up in Manchester United's 2-0 defeat by Newcastle. United's midfield of Casemiro and Christian Eriksen were overrun by the Magpies. They are easy to play against and easy to beat. To play a formation where you’re outnumbered in midfield, and then give the extra running to 30-somethings Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, was a contradiction.
