Uniteds

Located in southern Russia, Dagestan has a mystical status among fight fans after producing a slew of UFC champions in recent years.

The region has a long tradition in wrestling, thriving in the sambo style and producing a host of Olympic and world champions in the discipline.

Such success is no coincidence, though, as children from the region are often encouraged to take up combat sports, specifically wrestling, almost as soon as they are able to stand on two feet.

“When I was a kid, my dad was always telling me and my little brothers that we had to be strong, firstly to protect yourself, your family, and your friends,” says Ibragim.

“So we all got used to fighting, and that’s why everyone knows how to fight in Dagestan. It’s not a surprise.

“Amir was a very good wrestler. You can see the transition from wrestling to football; obviously, it helped my little brothers a lot.

“Some of the footballers he comes up against don’t have the same base he has. That’s why he’s stocky, strong and really competitive – because of wrestling.”

Amir was just nine years old when he was being put through his paces at Sheffield United. Unaware of his age, coaches grouped him with boys five years older.

He was unfazed by the oversight and was more than comfortable holding his own against older players because of his experience in wrestling.

“They thought Amir and I were the same age, apparently,” says Ibragim.

Amir was signed up, along with Ibragim’s little brothers Gazik and Muhammad.

The family’s stay in South Yorkshire was short, however, as just weeks after signing for the Blades, Manchester United became aware of Amir’s talent and he moved across the Pennines as a result.

“They played Manchester United in a tournament and Amir scored a brilliant free-kick,” says Ibragim.

“One of their scouts saw him play and picked him straight away.”

Six years after joining the Old Trafford club and at the age of 15, , Amir became one of the youngest players in the club’s history to train with the first team when he did so in April 2023.

“Do you know what he said to me? ‘This is where I belong’,” Ibragim says.

“Can he be a first-team player for Manchester United? 100%. They need to let all the young players play right now.

“I don’t think they would play worse than the first-team players. I think the young guys are hungrier than the current first-team players.”

Since then, Gazik and Muhammad, the latter once on the books of Manchester City, have also made the move to Manchester United.

“Gazik, this kid is talented,” adds Ibragim.

“He picked up everything quicker than everyone else. He’s a good defender. He’s going to be like a new Rio Ferdinand for Man United.”

Since Amorim’s arrival, he has attempted to get United playing his specific system, rarely straying away from his philosophy.

By taking a system-first approach, Amorim looks for specific qualities from his players in each position, asking them to adapt to what he wants, rather than altering his system to fit the players at his disposal.

Looking at his system and what he wants from his midfielders may help explain how he navigates the next few months.

Amorim opts for a 3-2-4-1 shape that does not rely on having the majority of the ball.

At the start of his tenure, Amorim looked to build-up short, but to his credit has opted to play long from the keeper more often – which suits the players he has. This requires players able to cover distance and win second balls.

His side are asked to carry out passing routines too with patterns of play often ending in United’s midfielders playing through-balls over the top for attackers running in behind.

The midfield duo therefore need to be able to carry out these instructions.

Amorim’s preferred midfield duo of Casemiro and Fernandes provides clues to what he asks from his midfielders.

Casemiro’s role is more positionally strict – screening the defence, breaking up play and getting up and down the pitch to close the distance between defence and attack when the ball is played long.

Fernandes is given licence to contribute in attack but, like Casemiro, has the ability to run hard up and down the pitch, getting back to defend when needed.

Both players have a tendency to play direct passes into attackers running in behind whilst taking few touches in midfield – qualities that fit Amorim’s tactical plan.

The other midfield options must therefore fit into either Casemiro or Fernandes’ roles, with Ugarte being the most likely back-up to Casemiro while Mount, Martinez and Mainoo possess some of the quality to do Fernandes’ job.

Given the constraints around the Africa Cup of Nations and United’s injuries, the other option is for Amorim to tweak his system.

This is not something he has done yet at Old Trafford, but – when asked about a shortage of wing-backs – he hinted he could, depending “on the way we play in that particular week, if we have to change for a back four, we change for a back four”.

The shortage of midfielders could force his hand in the same way.

If United are to move to four at the back, with three in midfield, the obvious player to benefit would be Mainoo.

The England man has struggled to displace either Casemiro or Fernandes given the specific tactical demands Amorim asks for in this system. And the United boss believes Mainoo’s strengths and weaknesses are more suited to a midfield three.

“The problem is that we are playing with two [midfielders] and you guys see Kobbie in a different way to what I am seeing,” he said.

“Maybe if you play with three midfielders, not with just two. But with three, Kobbie will have more minutes.”

A remarkable, chaotic, mesmerising Premier League thriller at Old Trafford captured the imagination even of the clinical operators in the dugout.

“Really difficult to explain,” said Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola. “But I prefer 4-4 to 0-0.”

“Fun,” was Manchester United counterpart Ruben Amorim’s initial observation.

Analysing for Sky Sports, Jamie Carragher went further.

“The best game of the Premier League season so far,” said the former England and Liverpool defender. “It was almost a throwback to Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United with attacking football.

“It is the best I have seen Man Utd. For the majority of the game, they were absolutely fantastic.

“For the first time under Amorim – and first time in a long time – I felt like I was watching what Man Utd are supposed to be. Wave after wave attack, but the inability to defend has hurt them.”

For the record, Ferguson took charge of two games when United scored four and didn’t win.

The first was a significant factor in his side’s failure to win the 2012 title as United threw away a 4-2 lead and drew 4-4 with Everton at Old Trafford.

The other was Ferguson’s very last match, an extraordinary 5-5 draw at West Brom in 2013.

Amorim has a very long road ahead before he can be compared to Ferguson.

But at least, on a night when his side led twice in the first half, then fought back to get their noses in front again after conceding two in a matter of minutes at the start of the second, and finally had to settle for a point as Bournemouth finished the stronger, he understood what everyone had witnessed.

In a vibrant first half, the hosts’ had the highest non-penalty xG value (2.49), most shots (17) and joint-most touches in the opposition’s box (30) of any side in the opening 45 minutes of a Premier League match this season.

“If you understand a little bit,” Amorim said. “If you follow the club like I follow the Premier League for so long, you [know you] have not just the duty to try to win the games. The way you try to win the games is so important for the fans.

“Of course they are desperate to win, but also, I feel that they are desperate to be inspired when they come to Old Trafford.

“Today was inspiring, I think, also because of Bournemouth. But in the end that’s the feeling of frustration of not winning the game.”