Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim insists his side have bigger problems than Manchester City despite their rivals’ underwhelming form.
City, who travel to Old Trafford on Sunday for the Manchester Derby – live on Sky, are experiencing their worst run of form since Pep Guardiola took control of the club in 2016.
The Premier League champions have won just once in their last 10 games in all competitions in a spell that also saw them lose five in a row.
United’s fortunes have only been slightly better after a stuttering start under new boss Amorim. The Reds lost their last two Premier League games against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, but battled back to beat Viktoria Plzen on Thursday in the Europa Leauge to give Amorim his third win in six games. Despite City’s lack of fortunes though, Amorim believes Guardiola’s side remains a threat.
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Sky Sports’ Peter Smith explains why United head coach Ruben Amorim has repeatedly reshuffled his starting XI line-up
“They are so good at what they do, that they can change this momentum any time,” Amorim told Sky Sports.
“They are a very strong team with a lot of years working together. They won a lot but also lost a lot. We have a bigger problem because we are working on simple things but we want to win like Manchester City.
“It’s a game where both teams aren’t living the greatest moment of the season but it’s always a derby and we want to win it.”
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Speaking on NBC Sports Gary Neville believes that rotation, in particular changing the back line, will not help fix the problems at United
Amorim earned his first scalp against Guardiola’s City in November as Sporting boss. Sporting’s 4-1 victory against City in the Champions League gave them what was at the time, their third consecutive defeat during their winless run.
However, for Amorim, the Sporting victory doesn’t have any bearing on the upcoming derby, instead, United’s boss is relishing the opportunity to see how his side react in a derby atmosphere.
“We can’t use so much from that [Sporting] game but it helped us to understand the game and feel the game really close.
“We have so much to do, not just in the game. But we are looking at the way we will play. I’m excited to see the behaviour of our players, in this kind of game – to learn a lot about our players.”
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Speaking on the Transfer Talk podcast, Sam Tighe explains how United’s lack of budget is less of a concern given the track record of Ruben Amorim at improving players and ‘fitting square pegs in round holes’
Amorim will mark his first full month in charge at Old Trafford having played nine matches in 30 days. With little time in training to teach a change in system, Amorim has reiterated the need for patience during the club’s transition period.
“This should be like a pre-season, where I get to know my players but we do this in competition,” Amorim said.
“You always have surprises. You have an idea of a player and you have one or two surprises in good and bad ways.
“I already know it is a big job, it will take time. Forget me as a coach, the club needs time. That’s an important thing that everybody has to understand and we have to focus on every detail. Not just the result, we want to win but we have to improve a lot.”
