Attacking Football

Out of Possession: Manchester City were limited to 0.91xG, with just 0.29xG coming from open play. So, let's start with the Red Devils' out-of-possession approach. Right from the start, Ruben Amorim was going to implement the 5-2-3 OOP shape he used at Sporting. Before Mount's injury, Bruno played as a pivot alongside Ugarte. His main task was to drop wide to support Mazraoui against Doku and Nunes. This strategy worked, especially because Mazraoui handled himself against Doku, winning six out of nine tackles.

Despite Mason Mount going out due to injury, the OOP plan didn't chance. The front five remained narrow, blocking central areas and allowing City to use the spare man, Nunes, as an out-ball. From there, Mainoo joined Mazraoui on the right-hand side while Manuel Ugarte swept in front of the backline.

Speaking of Ugarte, the Uruguayan might've put his best performance in a Manchester United shirt both with and without the ball. https://x.com/FathalliMo/statu...

Whenever Manchester City decided to go long from Ederson or tried to progress the ball through line-breaking passes, all three Manchester United center-backs did well to either win their aerial duels or step out of the backline to intercept passes towards De Bruyne and Foden. The Red Devils won more duels, notably in the air, in what was probably the most active defensive performance we saw from United center backs.

Although Manchester United did not press high for the majority of the game, there were some instances, especially during City's goal kicks, when the Red Devils stepped up the pitch and played man-to-man, forcing the opponent to go long and contest the aerials at the back.

The defensive approach didn't change in the second half, and although the Citizens had success in finding Foden in the pockets, United's backline did well to react by either tracking the surrounding runners or intercepting the ball off of N47.

In Possession: Sure, the Red Devils forgot their "fork" at home in the first half, putting in a toothless display upfront and averaging just 0.12xG. Still, that doesn't mean there were no signs of progress, especially when it came to building up from the back. The key ingredient here was "switches." Manchester United repeatedly looked to play the ball on one side, provoke the press, and then switch the play to the other side, notably the right-hand side. Manuel Ugarte, who showed great composure on the ball, helped United get out of sticky situations multiple times. After the switch was made, Maz, Amad, and Maino combined quickly to progress the ball.

Here's another instance where Manchester United overloaded the right-hand side to isolate and create space for Diogo Dalot on the other side of the pitch before switching the play.

In the second half, with City's intensity off the ball decreasing compared to the first, Manchester United managed to gain more territory and have long spells of control. As always, the aim was to play around City's block rather than through it. This is, by the way, different from Amorim's usual approach at Sporting, who often looked to progress the ball through the middle. Perhaps the biggest proof of United's 2nd half-control was their first attempt on target through Amad's header, which came after a possession sequence that lasted more than two minutes (from 59:33 to 61:46) Again, this sequence highlighted Amorim's principles of quick combinations on the overloaded side before quickly switching to the other side of the pitch to take advantage of the created space.

With control comes chances, and after Bruno's one-on-one miss, it seemed that Manchester United was going to get something out of the game. That's exactly what happened. Amad stole the show and the ball to win the penalty, then returned in the dying minutes to meet Licha's brilliant ball to win the game for United. Perhaps Amad's timing and execution of that run is even better than the finish!

Sure, some might argue that this performance was possible against a deteriorating Manchester City squad, but only United supporters would know how much of a difference a structured approach and a clear style of play have brought in the recent few weeks. As always, Ruben Amorim has a long way to go, and the downs will probably outweigh the ups. However, with enough time and the right personnel, Manchester United will only get better, and why not return to where it belongs? -End-

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