The Boxing Day fixtures in the English Premier League have thrown up a particularly tantalising prospect for observers in Portugal, with two recent managerial arrivals facing off in an unmissable clash.
Rúben Amorim’s beleaguered Manchester United head to Molineux to take on Wolverhampton Wanderers, who enjoyed a bright start in their opening match under the guidance of fellow Portuguese Vítor Pereira.
Pereira, who was appointed new boss of relegation battlers Wolves last week, led his team to a 3-0 win over Leicester City on his first occasion in the dugout on Sunday, ending their four-match losing streak. Portuguese duo Gonçalo Guedes and Rodrigo Gomes both got on the scoresheet, while Guedes and captain Nélson Semedo registered assists on what was a dream start for Pereira.
Goncalo Guedes getting us ahead ???? pic.twitter.com/cuNUqnp0tB
— Wolves (@Wolves) December 22, 2024
A first Wolves goal for Rodrigo Gomes ???????? pic.twitter.com/WRFJPwZjtC
— Wolves (@Wolves) December 22, 2024
“To be here, I cannot explain,” Pereira said after the win at Leicester. “I started as a coach when I was 29 and I am now 56, so it means that it’s been a long, long journey to come here and it’s a privilege. It was very good spirit. What I asked from them, is that at the end of the game we must feel proud about the work that we did and make our supporters proud.
“We'll rest, and in the rest time, we need to have the tactical skills to help them, even when they are resting, when they are recovering. It means that I must do the corrections that we need.
“We will improve, will be better than Sunday. OK, the result was result fantastic. I'm very happy inside, but I believe that we can do it in a better way. When we arrive in the box, we need to understand the position that we need to arrive to score, because I don't want to players in the same space.
“It was a short time to work, we will improve for sure. We’ll improve our possession, our defensive organisation. I just need a few weeks. I don't need a lot of time to put this team playing in the way that I want, because I know what I want and they are open to this kind of play. I want to play with quality. For me, football is not only the results. For me, it must be a beautiful game.”
Amorim has a lot of talent – Pereira
“We never played against each other,” Pereira said of Amorim. “I'm older than him. I took a lot of time to arrive here, because I made maybe bad steps in my career and I missed the opportunity to come sooner. Amorin is the new generation of Portuguese coach with a lot of talent in the communication, tactical talent, strategical talent, and I believe that he will do very good work in the Premier League.
“You can play in 4-3-3 and your 4-3-3 is completely different than my 4-3-3. In my opinion, what’s important is the dynamic of the system. When we try to understand the system that they [any team] play, almost all the time they attack in one system and they defend in another system. It means that it's difficult to say we are working in this system, because after the dynamic will change the system. It depends what I want to create, if I want to change something. But the big principles, they are the most important in football, the big principles, the intentions.”
Pereira was also asked about the improvement in Guedes, who has struggled to make much of an impression in England since moving from Valencia in 2022. “I can give him confidence, for sure,” said the former Porto boss. “I can increase the tactical skills, and he needs to know that to play with me he must run, he must fight. He must work for the team, not only for himself. This is for him and for everybody. I want to let the players express themselves, but working for the team, simple.”
Amorim: “I just want to win”
On the other end of a 3-0 scoreline on Sunday was Rúben Amorim, who watched his Manchester United side collapse to an embarrassing 3-0 home defeat to high-flying Bournemouth at Old Trafford. Once again United had the chances to take control of the match, but in a repeating pattern the Red Devils spurned their opportunities, while conceding poor goals.
Interestingly, the match on Sunday pits the two teams with the most goals conceded from set pieces against each other. Wolves have conceded a remarkable 14 from set pieces in the league, while United are second with 9 against. As has become a familiar sight, United allowed Bournemouth to take an early lead from a free-kick delivery, before capitulating in the second half with individual errors proving costly.
Amorim’s side find themselves in the curious routine of being statistically stronger than their opponents in most departments in each game, including expected goals (XG) but remain on the end of unflattering scorelines. After Sunday’s defeat, Amorim pinpointed the anxiety in his side, who appear to struggle under the pressure of crucial moments in games.
Asked about his compatriot and opponent on Boxing Day, Amorim admitted that Pereira will be hoping to exploit United’s problems, which see them in the astonishingly low position of 13th as the year draws to a close. With matches against Newcastle and Liverpool soon after, there is concern that United’s may find themselves in the bottom half for some time.
“He [Pereira] coached in Portugal, he won two titles and he did a great job in Porto,” said Amorim. “So I know him, he’s a very good coach. He will prepare the game, he will understand our moment. He’s also in a difficult moment, but he knows big clubs so he understands for us this moment is really hard. So he will try to take advantage, but we will be prepared for the game.
“Rotating players? In this moment it’s not rotation to see the players and prepare the future, it’s simply to not have injuries. We are trying to address everything. I just want to win games, because I know there’s a long-term project and we are focused on that, but I also know that in big club you don’t have a lot of time and you have to win games.
“I have a clear idea of the responsibility I have here, but I’m trying to manage this team to not have injuries - if we have injuries it’s a massive problem – and try to win games and manage all the players. So I’m not rotating to see the future, I just want to win games and not have injuries.
“I cannot say better things of the fans. What I’m trying to say to the fans is that we understand and I understand the moment. I understand the frustration, the disappointment. I understand. We will improve, it will take time. I said the same thing here after [the 4-0 win against] Everton when people were talking about the top four. So I know it’s going to be really tough.
“But it’s important for us on this side to say to the supporters that we understand. They are incredible. We are having a season that maybe hasn’t been seen for many years and we know that. So the only way to face this is to prepare the next game like we won. And then go again – try to win a match. The fans need our help, not the other way around.”
The subject of the busy schedule was posed to Amorim, who responded bluntly.
“I just want to win, I don’t care about Christmas. I’m just focused on us needing to win the next match.”
By @SeanGillen9
