A cold and snowy Anfield may seem like an unlikely place for a football revolution to take place. Liverpool’s ground is usually a barren wasteland, where few opposition teams return home from with anything but a beating.
However, on Sunday, Manchester United braved the conditions and fortress Anfield to return home to Manchester with what could be a significant 2-2 draw when it comes to the team progressing under new boss Ruben Amorim.
United didn’t look scared against Liverpool
Many teams look beaten before kick-off against Liverpool at Anfield. This has helped the Reds maintain an impressive home record in recent years. However, despite some very questionable results this season, the Red Devils didn’t look scared at the home of their bitter north west rivals.
In fact, unlike in many games this season, some of the visiting players seemed to be enjoying themselves. Granted, some will say that some Liverpool players were not at their best during the game. For example, Trent Alexander-Arnold struggled for much of the game.
However, the Reds have often achieved results even when they haven’t played well in recent seasons, which is what good teams do, according to the small book of football cliches (don’t look it up, it’s not an actual book!).
United played with confidence, which belied their position in the bottom half of the Premier League table. Although they may have ridden their luck at times, they were relatively solid in defence and possessed a major attacking threat going forward. It was an all-around top performance.
Ruben Amorim’s effect on the team
When Manchester United’s boss Amorim arrived at the club in late November from the Portuguese giants Sporting CP, fans expected the team to immediately improve from its previous form under predecessor Erik ten Hag. However, it would be charitable to say that results under the Portuguese boss have not always been great.
It is still early in Amorim’s reign, though, so nobody at United should panic just yet. The new boss’s style of play and tactical set-up may take a while for players to adapt to. Amorim is a coach who likes his team to play on the front foot, no matter who they are playing against.
He sets out with the intention of winning every game, which is a strange thing to say, but some head coaches set out their team so negatively that their team becomes a chore to watch. See Everton under Sean Dyche.
Amorim is made differently, though. Like many up-and-coming young head coaches, he prefers to play a high-pressing, possession game, which can lead to his team dominating the ball.
When at Sporting CP, his teams were highly attractive and entertaining to watch. His style of play wasn’t just eye-catching. It was successful, as he led the club from the Portuguese capital to two Primeira Liga titles, including in season 2023/24.
For much of Sunday’s game against Liverpool, United, despite playing the best team in the league this season, still tried to attack and dominate possession. Not many teams have 47.2 per cent possession against Liverpool at Anfield.
Most teams sit back and attempt to absorb the home team’s pressure, then try to hit them on the break. While United did have to defend at times when they did attack, more often than not, they made good use of the ball and got numbers in attacking positions.
It takes a brave head coach to play the game this way, especially against the league leaders. However, Amorim knows what he wants and how he wants to play, and he is not going to let a small fact, like Liverpool being the league leader, stop him from doing so.
Arguably, Sunday’s game was the first time during Amorim’s reign that we saw anywhere close to the style of play he mastered during his time with Sporting. Something seemed to click with certain players, and it was reflected in the well-earned point.
It could have been all three points if centre-back Harry Maguire hadn’t fired over when well-placed with the last kick of the game. The fact that United was not sitting back and settling for a draw illustrated Amorim’s brave style of play.
Many head coaches would have shut up shop at 2-2 and just be happy to hang on for a point at Anfield. That wasn’t the case with United on Sunday. They smelt blood and almost came home with a completely unexpected victory.
There are plenty of positives at United for Amorim to work on
The draw illustrated that players are starting to buy into Amorim’s style of play. United have become something of a mess in recent years. The Red Devils have wasted money in the transfer market and just haven’t been good enough on the pitch.
However, some promising players in the Manchester United squad may not have been used in the right way by previous bosses. The likes of Amad Diallo, Manuel Ugarte and Alejandro Garnacho all played key roles in the draw.
These young, hungry players in their early 20s can be vital to United’s improvement and chances of progressing on the pitch.
Sunday’s game must be the start under Ruben Amorim. The performance proved that this set of players could produce a big performance and result, even if it was against a slightly under-par Liverpool team.
Amorim is starting to get his ideas across to the player behind the scenes. The job at Manchester United was always going to be a difficult one, as they have underachieved for so long.
The United boss is a highly talented coach and tactician, as he has proven in his homeland. However, he is not a magician. United was never going to improve overnight. However, there do now seem to be signs of life at United, and if they can build on Sunday’s draw, then maybe it could be a launch pad for a much more successful Manchester United team in the future.