Manchester United beaten at Arsenal as Ruben Amorim is shown areas in need of improvement
Arsenal scored two goals from corners to beat Man Utd 2-0 at Emirates Stadium and hand Ruben Amorim his first defeat as United boss; Portuguese must address his squad's fitness issues as well as their attacking play if they are to achieve success this season
Thursday 5 December 2024 15:28, UK
Ruben Amorim suffered his first league defeat since December 2023 at Arsenal - and his first Premier League loss was a reality check of the task he has on his hands at Manchester United.
The Portuguese, hired off an incredibly dominant spell in charge of Sporting in his homeland, had warned a storm was coming for his side before the match, despite their 4-0 win over Everton at the weekend.
"The storm will come. We are going to have difficult moments and we will be found out in some games," he had said in his pre-match press conference. That storm arrived at the Emirates Stadium in the second half when Arsenal corners rained down on United's six-yard box and Jurrien Timber and William Saliba hit the net.
It was the first time United had conceded two goals from corners in a Premier League game since January 2014.
But set-piece defending was not the only issue on show. Amorim will have learnt exactly where his side are and where they must improve from this loss...
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Match fitness
Amorim said there is currently a "time limit" for certain players in matches, given the need to manage their injury issues and nurse them back to full fitness. Tyrell Malacia's withdrawal at half-time - after he had done well to limit Bukayo Saka in the first half on his first Premier League appearance since May 2023 - was evidence of that. As was the substitution of Harry Maguire on the hour mark. Amorim also referenced Mason Mount and Leny Yoro.
It was seen in Amorim's team selection too, with the six changes he made the most by Man Utd from one Premier League game to the next since the final day of the 2022/23 season when there was an FA Cup final to prepare for.
The starting XI raised eyebrows, given Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee had each scored twice against Everton last time out only to be benched. But Amorim - as he did after the draw at Ipswich - explained how he is having to manage training loads by rotating his team.
Attacking threat
Those changes make it difficult to build patterns of play and consistency in performance and the changed front three here had little impact - much like the subs who replaced them in attacking areas.
Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho did not have a shot. Mount had the fewest touches of any starter. Zirkzee despaired as one second-half layoff missed its target by a long way, ending the prospect of a United counter, but Rashford's most significant contribution was to mess up an attempted flick as he tried to clear the ball, handing Arsenal the corner they scored their second goal from.
Bruno Fernandes, in the deeper central-midfield role, set up a couple of shots but was not the creative force he can be and United ultimately could not go up through the gears when they needed to in the second half.
Matthijs de Ligt's header - which drew a fine save from David Raya - was United's only real moment of serious threat.
Their Expected Goals totals under Amorim now reads 0.8, 1.07, 0.31 in games against Ipswich, Everton and Arsenal.
"We worked a lot on building up," said Amorim. "You can see the structure and the idea. But then in the last part, in the final third, you can see we need to improve, be more aggressive and have more ideas."
The positives...
Yoro's first appearance for Man Utd after breaking his foot against Arsenal in pre-season was a definite plus point for Amorim. The young centre-back, playing on the right of the back three when he came on in the second half, stretched to put a dangerous Saka cross behind and made a good block when Leandro Trossard looked like he might score.
Amad Diallo also looks a good fit for this system. He was in part an exception to United's attacking issues, producing some exciting dribbles down the right - but like his team-mates he was unable to ignite that spark into a substantial contribution to get United back into the game.
Amorim warned there would be difficult moments as he tries to establish his way of playing. Wednesday night was one of them. And there will be more to come. But Amorim - and all watching on - will be clear on where United must improve.
