Pauly – Kobbie Mainoo’s lack of minutes under Ruben Amorim
We spent the 2023 preseason excited for Kobbie Mainoo. An injury meant we’d have to wait a bit longer to see him get into the team but when he did, he did not disappoint. It only took a few games for Mainoo to establish himself as United’s best midfielder. By the end of the season, he was scoring in the FA Cup final and on the plane to Euro 2024. By the end of the tournament, he was starting for England.
That doesn’t happen by accident. Mainoo wasn’t the finished product but every United fan was able
to see that in terms of raw talent he was the best player to come out of Carrington in quite some time. He was the future.
Then Ruben Amorim came in and things never looked right. Mainoo battled injuries but Amorim could never settle on a position for him. He played him as a deeper midfielder, he played him as an attacking midfielder, he even played him up top one game. This season Amorim seemed to have given up, deciding the best position for him was on the bench.
Amorim’s answers were never consistent. Early on he said Mainoo couldn’t start because was competing with Bruno Fernandes for a spot on the pitch – even though under Amorim Mainoo played over 50 per cent more minutes next to Bruno than he did next to Casemiro and Ugarte combined. United’s midfield was being overrun on an almost weekly basis.
His lack of game time dominated every press conference, which only seemed to make Amorim madder. Despite the midfield never being able to establish any sort of consistency, Mainoo still couldn’t get a look. It was bizarre.
It’s rare for the mob to actually know more than the manager. Most of the time the reason they’re sticking with that bad player that you hate it’s either because they’re not actually that bad or because they’re still better than the alternative. But in this case the mob knew. Michael Carrick came in and immediately put Mainoo back in the team and Mainoo immediately looked like the missing piece to the midfield. He played like United’s best midfielder.
Even in hindsight it remains shocking that amid all the turbulence Ruben Amorim never gave the kid a chance.
Vince – Why Michael Carrick Has Been Manchester United’s Biggest Surprise This Year
When Michael Carrick took over at Manchester United, expectations were cautious at best. Many viewed him as a steady short-term solution rather than someone capable of truly changing the direction of the club. Instead, Carrick has quietly become one of the biggest surprises of United’s season.
United instantly looked more organized, more disciplined, and far more focused than it did earlier in the year. Matches that once felt chaotic now look controlled, and players seem to have a much clearer understanding of their roles on the pitch. Most importantly, players played their natural positions instead of being forced to play under Amorim’s “system”
What has stood out most is Carrick’s ability to refocus the squad’s priorities. Rather than chasing headlines or relying on individual moments, United started winning games through structure, effort, and consistency.
Younger players have developed quickly under his leadership, while senior players appear more comfortable in a balanced system. Carrick has also brought a calmer atmosphere around the club, which has helped steady a team that often looked overwhelmed by pressure in recent seasons.
It may not be a complete rebuild yet, but for the first time in a while, Manchester United feels like a club moving forward with a clear direction.
Suwaid – Set piece threat
Set pieces defined this Premier League season, and while we’d all prefer a league season where set pieces played a part but were not as significant as they were this season, I was glad to see a United side look as threatening from set pieces as they have this season. The best teams tend to have many strings to their bow: they’re good in settled play, on the break, and from set pieces. Even teams associated with keeping the ball on the ground, like many of Pep Guardiola’s sides, have been excellent at attacking set pieces through the years. It should never be considered a mere bonus but viewed as a crucial part of a team’s attack.
While it’s true that Casemiro played a big part in this regard, and even a player as threatening from dead-ball situations as him will struggle to repeat the feat season after season, there was enough evidence to suggest that United could maintain a threat from attacking set-pieces next season without the Brazilian. United will retain some decent aerial threats next season, like Harry Maguire, and have players who can deliver fantastic passes from dead-ball situations. That’s a good place to start from, and perhaps with some additions and improvements, we’ll maintain a threat all season without being too reliant on them.
Colin – Certainty between the posts
Many young Manchester United fans do not recall, and I am only just old enough to recall, the anxiety over goalkeeper in the mid-2000s. Fabien Barthez was fine but moved on back to France in 2003 and left Sir Alex Ferguson gambling on a young Tim Howard or Roy Carroll to take over in goal.
Neither worked, and if not for a cost-effective move for Edwin Van Der Sar in 2005, it might have been a far less fruitful end to the great manager’s career.
From Van Der Sar to David De Gea, there was an 18 year period of stability at the position. After two seasons of the Andre Onana and Altay Bayindir experience, those days of stability seem to have returned with Senne Lammens.
When United signed the 23-year-old from Royal Antwerp there was excitement over a new option, but the idea of a relative unknown taking over seamlessly didn’t seem like a real possibility. Especially when news emerged of Ruben Amorim’s preference for a veteran signing and the month-long acclimation process.
Lammens finally got the call to start after a month of Bayindir and heavy defeats to Manchester City and Brentford, and United never looked back. He started all 32 remaining Premier League games and the FA Cup Third Round tie, recording eight clean sheets and providing the strong presence needed. On top of the ability to execute in crowded boxes and attack balls into the goalmouth, shot stopping ability and good reflexes, Lammens simply has no fear. Like Tom F***ing Cruise.
