Yahoo Sports Man Utd fans cannot read too much into Sporting’s win over Man City – opinion
Ruben Amorim produced what was arguably the finest win of his managerial career as his Sporting Lisbon side embarrassed European champions Manchester City with a 4-1 victory at the Estadio José Alvalade.
With Amorim set to become Manchester United’s new permanent manager on November 11, can the Old Trafford support expect their new look side to quickly catch up to City?
The win Sporting delivered on Tuesday night, while convincing in terms of score, came as Amorim’s men took advantage of City’s recent jitters. City flew to Portugal in the midst of a downward spiral having suffered consecutive losses for the first time since September 2023.
Sporting, meanwhile, were high-flying, undefeated since early August with wins in all but one of the 15 matches they have played since. Even Amorim’s departure, announced last week, could not dampen Sporting’s spirits, seeming instead to have inspired them to offer him a good send off after a trophy laden spell in the Portuguese capital.
Ahead of Amorim’s move to United, this win will be used as a barometer to anticipate how he could approach his first Manchester Derby on December 15. Despite the final scoreline reading heavily in Sporting’s favour, the state of play painted a different picture, however, with Amorim himself even admitting his team were “lucky”.
City dominated the first half after Phil Foden’s early goal, creating plenty of chances but were made to pay for their poor finishing. When Victor Gyokeres equalised in the 38th minute with the hosts’ second shot of the game, momentum flipped completely.
Gyokeres’ goal was something of a sucker punch for City and was followed by two more as Sporting scored twice in quick succession in the first four minutes of the second half, leaving Guardiola’s men in disarray.
Their misery was compounded as the usually reliable Erling Haaland rifled a penalty off the crossbar. Gyokeres’ second penalty of the evening was then a further kick in the teeth.
Amorim’s side was set up to frustrate their guests. His defence went largely unchanged from that which has conceded just twice in the Champions League this season, and only three times in the league. He set up with the intent to counter-attack, with Gyokeres’ speed up top proving too much for a fatigued City backline.
Sporting’s buildup play was notably direct, making the most of limited possession to shock City. Gyokeres’ first goal of the night was scored in transition and set up by Giovany Quenda’s incisive through ball, which cut out no less than five City defenders and put Gyokeres through for a one-on-one. The second goal saw the ball move from Sporting’s own penalty box to City’s in just four passes, covering the length of the pitch in the blink of an eye.
Amorim has employed the same 3-4-3 system for most of his time at Sporting and there is something to be said for how he approached this match and how his plan was executed.
But whether United’s squad can quickly adapt to an alien system is questionable. Rasmus Hojlund is unlikely to replicate the high-powered pace of Gyokeres leading the line and Amorim will be forced to find a new way in behind Guardiola’s defence.
United’s squad looks short in other departments too. Full-backs Diogo Dalot and Noussair Mazraoui will have to quickly learn a new role, and a dearth of clinical finishing could also scupper the direct style Amorim appreciates.
Instilling the same fighting spirit in his new squad as Sporting displayed will be key but it is difficult to imagine the current United team holding firm under a near 40-minute attacking barrage in the same fashion Sporting did on Tuesday.
To replicate the Man City upset with United would be a perfect start to Amorim’s stay at Old Trafford, but it will be no easy feat.
