Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim looks on (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim finally changed his tactics last night, putting his team in a 4-2-3-1 game against Newcastle.
The Red Devils boss has remained firmly wedded to his preferred 3-4-3 formation since arriving at Old Trafford, with the use of three full-backs and full-backs that served him well at former club Sporting Lisbon.
At times, however, Amorim has faced criticism for sticking to a form that did not seem to suit the players in his United squad.
So, how did United progress in the back four against Newcastle last night?
Manchester United won the game, but it was not going well
It’s fair to say that Man Utd haven’t looked that convincing in the new system, even if Patrick Dorgu’s brilliant strike gave them a 1-0 win in a game they lost last season.
While some MUFC fans will be happy with the three points, others will note that Newcastle completely dominated and had most of the shots in the game.
| Manchester United | Newcastle | |
| Possession | 33.4% | 66.6% |
| Shots | 9 | 16 |
| Shots on target | 3 | 3 |
| Touch in the objection box | 15 | 44 |
Even better, though, Newcastle didn’t create anything of any real quality, as evidenced by the fact that they couldn’t convert their high number of shots into shots on target.
Both teams were also level in xG, with 1.2 each, according to data from FBref.
It wouldn’t have been pretty, but it led to only United’s second clean sheet of the season, so it shouldn’t be overlooked, especially with the WhoScored stats also giving all backs a top four.
Manchester United missed out on Bruno Fernandes
While formation is important, arguably the biggest factor for United was the absence of the injured Bruno Fernandes for the game.
The Portuguese midfielder is the most important player in Amorim’s side, contributing goals, assists, and quality football.
Unsurprisingly, their off-field record is often quite poor, according to Opta…
2022 – Man Utd won a Premier League game without Bruno Fernandes for the first time since a 3-2 win over Spurs in March 2022 under Ralf Rangnick. The Red Devils had lost five of their last six league games without a midfielder before today (D1). Independence. pic.twitter.com/LDqzaFSGLI
– OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 26, 2025
Overall, it’s probably hard to get too many endings in one game, but there are probably arguments both for and against using this formation as well.
In terms of possession, it was United’s lowest total all season, but we’ve also seen games where they had a lot of possession and failed to win, so maybe this change in approach will make them stronger.
While Fernandes is ineffective, that may be a realistic and logical way to get results, and Amorim is not a manager who can be very picky about how he takes points.
