The Red Devils lost an opportunity by not keeping the renowned striker in charge until the summer, when the Portuguese wanted to start work.
Ruben Amorim had the chance to work with Ruud van Nistelrooy at Manchester United back in November, but he decided to stick with his reliable backroom crew and let go of the legendary striker, who had done a great job filling in as interim manager while Erik ten Hag was fired and Amorim began work.
In Friday’s FA Cup fourth-round matchup between United and Leicester City, which has turned out to be a matchup between two of the worst teams in the top tier and, consequently, two of its most troubled managers, the two coaches will face off for the first time as rivals.
The Foxes are currently two points from safety in the final relegation zone after Van Nistelrooy’s team has lost eight of his 11 league games while winning just two.
Under Amorim, United is only slightly better off, losing seven of their 11 games during the time frame and currently occupying 13th place.
Given what has transpired at United over the past two months, it is hard to deny that the Red Devils made a grave error by not retaining Van Nistelrooy until the end of the season before bringing Amorim on board in the summer. Neither coach appears to be at all suited to the circumstances of their current clubs.
Even though Van Nistelrooy was only in charge of United for four games, it was a thrilling and joyous time. The club won three of its four games, defeating PAOK in the Europa League, drawing with Chelsea, and handily defeating Leicester in the league and Carabao Cup.
With the exception of Chelsea, the former striker had the benefit of playing all of his games at Old Trafford and facing a rather easy schedule. The ‘Theatre of Dreams’ has been eerily quiet and depressing throughout the most of his time, and Amorim has lost five of his nine home games across all competitions.
However, subsequent events have made his tenure even more favorable. By contrast, the stadium was extremely fired up while Van Nistelrooy was in charge.
Using the same 4-2-3-1 configuration that Ten Hag had employed, the Dutchman chose a straightforward tactical strategy. However, he strengthened his midfield by placing Casemiro close to Manuel Ugarte.
The two South American bruisers provided United with a strong foundation and a degree of regularity, even though it wasn’t particularly inventive.
Ten Hag and Van Nistelrooy’s United played a similar style, relying heavily on their wingers and aiming for counterattacks, but the players had newfound vigor and seemed to react better to a club legend than they did to his predecessor.