Manchester United crashed out of the second round of the Carabao Cup as Rúben Amorim’s men fell to a penalty-shootout loss against Grimsby Town.
Rúben Amorim made multiple starting XI changes, including a start for Kobbie Mainoo, as Manchester United faced Grimsby Town in the second round of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening at Blundell Park.
The tie started with the home side very much on the front foot, swinging in multiple good crosses into André Onana’s area. After a quarter of the tie had passed, Grimsby took the lead through a thumping strike from Charles Vernam.
Then, with around 30 minutes played, former United Academy triallist Tyrell Warren added a second after a shocking attempted punch from Onana, with Amorim’s men suddenly in serious trouble. In the second half, Amorim reacted by bringing on Bryan Mbeumo, Bruno Fernandes, and Matthijs de Ligt.
The rain started pouring down as the second half commenced, with Amorim throwing more and more and more attacking talent onto the field. With 15 minutes to play, Mbeumo finally handed United a lifeline with a cute finish into the bottom right-hand corner, assisted by Mainoo.
With just moments to play, Harry Maguire was able to grab an equalising effort after a fantastic corner cross from Mason Mount. With the game headed to penalties, Onana saved Grimsby’s third strike. Still, after Matheus Cunha and Mbeumo missed their penalties across as a 26-shot shootout, United crashed out of the Carabao Cup.
#1 – Mainoo showing signs of class
After two successive fixtures without playing, Mainoo finally played his first minutes of the season amid intense speculation surrounding his future at the club.
Although he was a little rusty in the opening few minutes, it did not take long for the 20-year-old to showcase his obvious quality, playing some lovely passes and looking to progress the ball whenever possible.
In the second half, he looked a little off the boil in what was his first competitive minutes of the season, but his assist for Mbeumo’s goal and general display was certainly the best performance put on by a United midfielder this season.
#2 – Onana is not good enough for United
In the last two ties, Altay Bayındır has been criticised for his lack of strength when coming out and trying to clear the ball, but Onana’s errors in the first half were significantly worse. After inexplicably trying to save the low first goal with his hands, he failed to get even a touch on the second.
In the second half, he continued to look shaky in the rain, and it was laughable to see Grimsby’s support joshing and joking at his expense throughout the 90 minutes.
United have been in talks with Royal Antwerp for Senne Lammens for the last week or so, and following this horrid display, they must finalise the deal as soon as they can.
#3 – This system simply doesn’t work
Rúben Amorim has been adamant that he will not deviate from his style and philosophy, as that is what has brought him to where he is today. However, it is now clear that this setup does not work in English football.
While the 3-4-2-1 has had success in Europe, it is too easily exposed anywhere across the English pyramid, with United’s players spread too far out on the field to secure a stronghold on the game.
Even once only two centre-backs were on the field with 25 minutes to play, Amorim kept to it, with Diogo Dalot in the back three and Amad at left wing-back.
#4 – Amorim’s creative red flag continues
In the opening few games at United, a big topic of conversation has been the lack of chances created against Arsenal and Fulham. Surely, United would be able to be more of a force against Grimsby Town.
Read More: Player Ratings – Grimsby Town vs Manchester United (Carabao Cup)
By the end of the tie, United had to rely on a great run and strike from Mbeumo and a strong Maguire header to score in the tie. United cannot go on like this, not by any stretch of the imagination.
#5 – Is Amorim’s writing on the wall?
So far this season, United have lost two and drawn one, having scored two goals across the three ties, with one being Rodrigo Muniz’s own goal in the 1-1 draw against Fulham.
It took United until the 75th minute to score against Gimsby, and after numerous chances, it took yet another late goal from Harry Maguire, who saved the club so many times last season, to secure the equaliser.
With one of the most epic-ever shootouts falling the way of the home side, it feels as if the writing is on the wall for Amorim.
Make sure to follow UtdDistrict on X, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and TikTok to never miss out on any of our Manchester United content. Our podcast, What the Devil?, is streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 pm (BST) on the United View YouTube channel.