Manchester United’s horrendous form in the Premier League this season continued on Saturday when they were held to a 2-2 draw by Everton at Goodison Park.
Ruben Amorim was appointed in November and has only won four of his 15 Premier League matches in charge of the Red Devils so far, losing eight of those matches.
The Portuguese head coach has been unable to stop the rot at Old Trafford and the draw with the Toffees was just the latest in a long line of setbacks this season.
Manchester United
22
1.5
Sporting
231
2.29
Braga
13
2.38
Casa Pisa
4
2.25
As you can see in the table above, this run of form at Manchester United is the lowest point in Amorim’s managerial career to date, as it is his lowest points per game tally with any club, by a distance too.
This suggests that the former Sporting and Braga boss may not be the problem for the Red Devils, given that United seems to be the outlier in his career, and that it is the players at his disposal who are letting him down.
Man United's highest earners
The Premier League giants have an expensive squad that has been assembled by several different managers with conflicting tactical philosophies, which has led to a disjointed team that is not ideal for Amorim at this moment in time.
Manchester United reportedly have the third-highest wage bill in the division, at £172.1m-per-season, as only Arsenal and Manchester City boast higher.
Unfortunately, the Red Devils have created a squad that has several of their top earners on the fringes of the starting XI or perennially injured.
Casemiro
£350k
12
Bruno Fernandes
£300k
25
Mason Mount
£250k
4
Matthijs De Ligt
£195k
20
Harry Maguire
£190k
14
Luke Shaw
£150k
0
Christian Eriksen
£150k
7
As you can see in the table above, only De Ligt and Fernandes have managed more than 15 starts in the Premier League within the club’s top seven earners at Old Trafford.
This suggests that Manchester United are not getting value for money out of their huge wage bill and that is something that has to change in the coming transfer windows and seasons, if they are to get back to the top of the English game.
Amorim was able to land a signing to bolster his squad in the January transfer window, Patrick Dorgu from Lecce, and the left-back is reportedly on a modest £40k-per-week.
Patrick Dorgu's form for Manchester United
The Danish wing-back made his debut against Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup as a right-sided wing-back earlier this month and made two tackles and two interceptions without being dribbled past once, before being taken off at half-time.
He has, however, played the full 90 minutes in his two Premier League appearances for the Red Devils and has shown plenty of positive signs on the left flank.
The 20-year-old played on the right side of the defence in the FA Cup win over Leicester but was moved to his more natural side on the left for the games against Tottenham and Everton in the top-flight.
Dorgu started 21 matches in the Serie A with Lecce in the first half of the season, before his winter switch to Old Trafford, and that has allowed him to hit the ground running in recent weeks.
Minutes
90
90
Key passes
2
0
Ground duels won
7/8
8/11
Aerial duels won
2/2
1/4
Tackles + interceptions
4
3
As you can see in the table above, the Denmark international has quickly found his feet from a defensive perspective, winning the majority of his duels with opposition attackers.
Interestingly, he has won a whopping 79% of his ground duels, so far, and that is an area that the wing-back on the other side, Diogo Dalot, struggles with.
The Portugal international (£85k-per-week) earns more than twice as much as Dorgu (£40k-per-week) but has not delivered enough on the pitch to justify his wage.
Why Diogo Dalot should be sold
Amorim must brutally bin the 25-year-old flop when the summer transfer window officially opens for business at the end of the season, as his form has not been good enough this season and he does not appear well-suited to the manager’s system.
Chalkboard
The former Sporting head coach deploys wing-backs who are in the team to get forward and create chances for the attacking players, but that is not a strong part of Dalot’s game.
He has only managed three goals and eight assists in 131 Premier League appearances for the club to date, and his attacking quality – as shown in the clip against Wigan above – has rarely been on display.
Dalot’s overall form in the Premier League this season has also left a lot to be desired. YouTuber AliceTalksFooty claimed that the full-back has “fallen off a cliff” after the draw with Everton, and it is difficult to argue with that assessment.
Appearances
36
25
Assists
3
1
Goals
2
0
Tackles made per game
2.3
2.2
Clearances per game
2.7
2
Ground duel success rate
57%
49%
As you can see in the table above, the Portuguese defender’s play in and out of possession has regressed from last season to the current campaign in the Premier League.
He has particularly struggled with ground duels, losing the majority of them, whilst Dorgu has come in and dominated opposition players in those battles, whilst Dalot has also failed to offer much in the way of quality at the top end of the pitch.
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INEOS should, therefore, ditch the 25-year-old flop in the summer in order to make room for a wing-back who suits his system to be brought in to play on the right side, as the Portugal international does not appear to have the attacking qualities that are needed to thrive under this manager.