Manchester United’s five things noticed vs Everton as Rúben Amorim must continue second-half idea

Manchester United’s five things noticed against Everton as a second-half change made by Rúben Amorim must continue in the future.

Rúben Amorim chose to make just one change to his line-up this weekend with Manuel Ugarte replacing Alejandro Garnacho as Manchester United lined up to face Everton in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.

The tie started with Everton pressing the life out of United, and it took just 20 minutes for the home side to find their lead as Beto capitalised on horrid defending from Amorim’s men to score his fifth goal in four games.

Then, after 30 minutes were played, Abdoulaye Doucouré added a second after he overpowered Harry Maguire following a save from André Onana, and United were in trouble at half-time.

United came out for the second half looking a little more stable but still inferior, although Bruno Fernandes fired a brilliant free kick with 20 minutes left to grab a goal back. Then, soon after, Manuel Ugarte had his moment to shine with a brilliant strike to draw the score level, setting up the tie for a tense final 10 minutes.

With the game reaching an incredible climax, a stupid error from Matthijs de Ligt saw him bring Ashley Young down in the area to hand Everton a penalty in the dying moments, although it was overturned by VAR and the tie ended in a draw.

Below are five things noticed from the fixture.

#1 – Amorim played a more structured midfield

Ahead of the game, Amorim explained that with the game likely to be a heavy-hitting and physical game, he chose to play Casemiro and Ugarte in the middle of the park.

However, United were completely overrun in the first half, with Casemiro and Ugarte unable to handle the pressure Everton was putting them under. Both players also lost a lot of their battles.

Casemiro was taken off after an hour, and Ugarte improved on the ball, which greatly helped the club control the game and fight back for their draw.

#2 – Dorgu was the only highlight

United were beyond shocking in the opening 45 minutes at Goodison Park, with the players looking completely lost and overwhelmed with the pressure Everton were putting on them.

Patrick Dorgu was the only player who could hold his head up high as the teams went into half-time, with his technical proficiency and physicality a complete level above the rest of the United squad.

He was a little less involved in the second half as United looked to play down the right more often,

#3 – Fernandes must stay further back

As soon as Alejandro Garnacho came on in the second half, Fernandes dropped deeper into midfield and United looked an entirely different side.

A lot of the play went through him as the Portuguese maestro looked to dictate the tempo of the game, and once he saw more of the ball, the fixture turned on it’s head.

Although he has his qualities further forward, in the system Amorim wants to employ, the club captain must play in the deeper midfield role to ensure he sees as much possession as possible.

#4 – Huge question marks amid worrying trend

Something must be said about how, once again, the players failed to turn up until they absolutely needed to.

Read More: Player Ratings – Everton vs Manchester United (Premier League)

Too often, under Amorim, United players have started slow and only started to pick up their performances once they were already a goal or two down, which seems to happen every game at this point.

While United players should be applauded after they fought back for the draw, the fact they put themselves in this position week after week is worrying.

#5 – A contextual positive after a sour week

In context, the draw against Everton is a positive. After going 2-0 down with fans fearing the worst after a week that’s felt so negative around the club, the fight United showed in the second half will give fans hope.

United are now on 30 points in the league, still far from confirmed safety from relegation, but showing the fight and desire after such a poor few weeks is a certain positive.

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