Jamie Carragher names the one £55m Man United star who ‘looks WORSE under Ruben Amorim’ after Newcastle defeat – as Red Devils suffer fourth loss in a row under new manager
Jamie Carragher has revealed which Man United star that ‘looks worse’ under Ruben Amorim after they suffered a fourth defeat in a row.
A miserable 2-0 Monday night defeat at home by Newcastle leaves the Red Devils 14th in the Premier League and just seven points above 18th-placed Ipswich Town.
To make matters worse, questions are already being asked over Amorim’s tactical approach – with the side now having suffered four consecutive defeats.
And, speaking on Monday night, Carragher insisted that the defensive back three that United have adopted has had a negative impact on one of their stars.
Speaking on Sky Sports, he said: ‘Again, I go to [Lisandro] Martinez, he can see Joelinton.
‘Martinez, for me, when he first came in, I was very strong on the fact I thought he was too small to play centre-back in a back four in the Premier League.
Manchester United suffered their fourth defeat in a row after a 2-0 loss to Newcastle
Lisandro Martinez particularly struggled to deal with the attacking line of the Magpies
After the match, Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher singled out the Argentine’s performance
‘And you know what? He proved me wrong to a certain extent, and it didn’t happen too often [Martinez getting exposed in the air], and he actually played really well under Erik ten Hag.
‘But I actually thought a perfect system would be a back three, where he’d have the security of two bigger players [next to him]. He looks worse in a back three, or he certainly looks worse under Ruben Amorim’.
Crucially, Martinez was beaten easily in the air by Newcastle’s Joelinton, who powered a header past Andre Onana to secure the visitors’ second goal.
Meanwhile, Alexander Isak opened the scoring with a well-placed header in the fourth minute after being left unmarked in the penalty area.
After the match, Carragher’s punditry partner Gary Neville also suggested that United are going backwards under the Portuguese coach.
‘He (Amorim) was resolute that he won’t change but he must be suffering deep inside. I’m worried as well. It was really grim. That first half an hour was hard to watch as a United fan,’ Neville said on Sky Sports.
‘There’s no doubt: performances and results have deteriorated in these last few weeks. They’re finding it very difficult, some of the players with the system, they’re finding it very difficult with the confidence, and the concern is that they’re getting dragged into a fight down there near the bottom.
‘I think they’ve got a lot to do and that is being very, very kind. I don’t think this group of players are of the quality of the ones that Ten Hag has had, Ole has had, Jose Mourinho has had, or Louis van Gaal.
Ruben Amorim admitted that United could find themselves in a relegation battle this season
Martinez was beaten in the air by Newcastle’s Joelinton for the second goal of the evening
‘They weren’t good enough for Manchester United in those periods but they were better teams and better squads than they are currently.’
United being panned by pundits is nothing new and the same criticism apply now as they have for a long time – a lack of energy, large midfield gaps, an imbalance.
Neville kept banging that drum on Monday night and named two players who he believes should not feature together again.
He said: ‘We know a lot of what we actually saw on the pitch was going to happen. Casemiro and (hristian) Eriksen in midfield, Carra has done a piece in the studio on (Noussair) Mazraoui and (Diogo) Dalot playing wing-backs and being more defensive and that that wouldn’t lead to more goals, and that’s exactly what happened.
‘The idea of Zirkzee in that left pocket, that’s not a pocket that you stay in, that’s a left pocket where you pick up the Newcastle right-back when he goes forward, that’s a left pokcket that means you make runs through. When he said he wasn’t really a number nine and that’s where he saw him playing, I was surprised’.
