Amorim 3-4-3 with classic UTD players

FriedClams

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GK: Schmeichel

RCB: Stam
CB: Ferdinand
LCB: Vidic

RWB: Beckham
CM: Keane
CM: Robson
LWB: Giggs

RF: Best
LF: Charlton

CF: Rooney
 
Going with my lifetime and some personal favourites

Schmeichel

Stam
Ferdinand
Vidic

Beckham (its often been pointed out he'd make a good modern day player)
Keane
Scholes
Giggs (would also excel I think)

Cantona
Rooney

Ronaldo (as the striker like his madrid days)
 
Not sure Vidic really fits at LCB. Keane and Robson seems like the no brainer midfield two. Wingbacks probably pick themselves as well. Front 3 is so tough though. You have to factor in the work rate required too which makes Cristiano and some other forwards not quite as good of a fit. I’ll go Rooney and Charlton as the 10’s behind RVN.

That team physically would run opposition sides over.
 
GK: Onana ( not sure if Schmeichel could pass well to feet)

RCB: Ferdinand
CB: Stam
LCB: Vidic

RWB: Beckham
CM: Robson
CM: Scholes
LWB: Evra ( better defensively than Giggs)

RF: Best
LF: Cantona

CF: Rooney
 
For people choosing Scholes was he a good presser of the ball especially higher up the pitch?
 
Rooney - Cantona - Ronaldo
Giggs - Scholes - Keane - Beckham
Silvestre - Rio - Vidic
VDS
Front 3 could be rearranged in any order.

One obvious weakness in there but I really like a left footer at LCB. And he did have a good ping to switch it to Becks on the right.
 
Like most people, Beckham and Giggs would be perfect as the wing backs. Incredible work rate both of them and defensively diligent. People often forget how good Giggs was at tackling. Had an amazing hook tackle.

Schmeichel

Stam - Ferdinand - Vidic

Beckham — Keane — Scholes — Goggs

Rooney — Cantona

Ronaldo


Van der Sar

Johnsen - Pallister - Martinez

Kanchelskis — Robson — Ince — Irwin

Berbatov — Bruno

Van Nistelrooy

I only went for players I’ve watched play in my lifetime. Not players like Charlton, Best etc. I think Evra would be great as a LWB, as would JS Park on either side. Lee Sharpe too. Think Butt and Veron as holding mids would be good shouts too, for a modern Amorim team.​
 
No Best/Charlton era for me as didn't see them.

GK: VDS

RCB: Stam
CB: Vidic
LCB: Ferdinand

RWB: Beckham
CM: Keane
CM: Robson
LWB: Giggs

RF: Rooney
LF: Ronaldo

CF: Van Nistelrooy
 
A sneaky variation that's also plausible would be moving Beckham into the middle alongside Keane and playing Valencia as a RWB. Would add another physical demon out wide while Beckham can still create through the middle (even if it's not where he played during his prime here)
 
VDS
Ferdinand - McGrath - Silvestre
Valencia - Keane - Robson - Irwin
Rooney - Giggs
Hughes

Subs
VDS, Stam, Beckham, Coppell, Park, Sharpe, Cole, Ince, Lingard

Ince would actually be great. Got around, great stamina, flexible, could pass, tackle, shoot etc

Lingard would excel in this type of formation too

Brought Silvestre in as LCB, he’s super quick, good in the air, decent on the ball and was good at switching the play to the opposite flank. He’d be good in this role I think. For me the likes of Blind, Heinze and Vidic are too slow.

Brought Hughes in as the supreme target man, who was good at pressing and bullying defenders
 
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van der Sar
Rio Stam Blind
Beckham Keane Scholes Giggs
Best Charlton
Law
van der Sar was better than Schmeichel with the ball at his feet which gives him the edge. Blind is not one of our best CBs ever but he'd be perfect for the LCB role. The rest kinda pick themselves for me.
 
For people choosing Scholes was he a good presser of the ball especially higher up the pitch?
For his day, yeah kind of. He certainly wasn't afraid to put in a tackle, though many often feared the result. I do remember him racking up interceptions in one of his later season too. Personally I'd just have him next to Keane in midfield.
 
GK : VDS

CB : Rio
CB : Stam
CB : Vidic

RWB : Beckham
LWB : Evra

CM : Keane
CM : Scholes

AM : Rooney
AM : Cantona

CF : Cole

Based on the players I've watched since early 90s. To explain my rationale for some decisions.

VDS better with his feet than Schmeichel.

Evra for his pace but you could interchange with Irwin.

Cole rather than someone like Ruud because I think he would press better, Ruud was pretty selfish in a good way but I don't think he'd press enough for the system.

Biggest omission is Ronaldo but based on his time at United before he developed more as a CF I don't see which position he would suit in this system.
 
Van Der Sar
Neville - Ferdinand - Evra
Becks - Keane - Scholes - Giggs
Veron - Rooney
Ronaldo​

It took two and a half decades, but I think we've finally cracked how to get Veron at his best in a United shirt.
 
VDS
Stam - Vidic - Rio
Beckham - Keane - Scholes - Giggs
Ronaldo - Ruud - Rooney
 
VDS
Rio - Vidic - Heinze
Valencia - Keane - Scholes - Evra
Beckham - Rooney
RVN
Obviously some pretty big omissions and some surprising additions there, but I'm just thinking in terms of suitability for the system. Players like Ronaldo and Giggs don't fit into this system as well as others. VDS over Schmeichel for his distribution.
 
Irwin would surely have been perfect for one of the 2 outside CB roles.
 
Interesting to see so many choose Ronaldo. Nothing even close to the required work rate for an Amorim team.
 
Doing this as the exercise it is and thinking of the 3-4-3 and what it asks of each player is very different from just putting our best players down and forcing them into positions they wouldn't be particularly optimised to play in. Seeing a lot of Vidic and Stam as left and right CB's, for example. Distribution is not there for either in those positions nor does Vidic have the pace to play LCB with massive open space left in front of him. There's midfield and what the 4 in that system have to do, although our midfielders of the highest echelon cover that rather easily. The central attacking hub is an interesting affair. I'll try two teams.

All time:

-------------------------------------------------------------------------Schmeichel
--------------------------------------Varane--------------------------Ferdinand-----------------------Edwards
------------------------------------------------------Keane-----------------------------------Robson
Beckham---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Giggs
-------------------------------------------------------Best--------------------------------------Charlton
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Law

Glaring omission in no Ronaldo, but he's not a wingback, and certainly wouldn't be better at it than either of these two, and he doesn't have the two way intensity or aggression for the roles behind the striker. Best, like Giggs, was a great tackler, was tenacious and had the ability to turn his own tackles into attacking forays. Charlton needs no explanation. Edwards and Varane for the left and right CB roles for their mobility and ability to distribute. No Scholes because Keane Robson is a joke and the energy through that midfield is insane. Nobody is better than Law for the intense, tightly packed and lethal striker role. He will do everything needed, on both sides of the ball and the synergy of that front 3 is the best in English football history.

Modern:

-------------------------------------------------------------------------Van der Sar
--------------------------------------Varane--------------------------Ferdinand-----------------------Shaw
------------------------------------------------------Keane-----------------------------------Carrick
Beckham---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Giggs
-------------------------------------------------------Yorke--------------------------------------Cantona
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rooney

Modern is a lot harder, especially at LCB and the partner for Keane. Opted for Carrick because he can sit and also help Blind, who has the intelligence but his physical prowess would be the most tested of them all. Again no Ronaldo as the version that was here was a winger or wing-forward, not a striker, and he's not better at 2-way play than the two flankers here. Yorke could be switched to top and Rooney played behind, but that front three would interchange anyway.

3-4-3 of Amorim's kind relies on extremely high intensity and despite Scholes being a better player than Carrick, he's not got the legs or cover to play over what's there. Even have half a mind to switch Carrick for Matic for the extra physical strength and power.

Edit: I completely forgot about Shaw, who is perfect for the role of LCB, d'oh!
 
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I’m going to focus on players I’ve watched a lot.

I’m not convinced with a lot of people’s choices for LCB. I think I’d lean to have Luke Shaw (a fit Shaw at his best) there over someone like Vidic. I like whoever has Blind there, that also makes sense but imo Shaw is a better player overall, worse passer though and less press resistant.

For the back 4, I think I’d go:

VDS
Rio - Vidic - Shaw​

My wingbacks are like everyone’s, Beckham and Giggs. They both can run for days and are great defensively and offensively. They’re happy to keep the width too.

Keane would thrive, as he would in most systems, such is his versatility.

Rooney is a given in one of the #10 roles. And for striker, one that won’t be in the #10s spaces, I think Ruud is great.

So team looks something like this:

VDS
Rio - Vidic - Shaw
Beckham - Keane - x - Giggs
Rooney - y
Ruud
I am tempted to go Veron for x, and Bruno for y. Veron would work and give us a lot there with a back 3 behind him. Bruno, I have a hard time arguing against how productive he is but he seems to be a bit of an odd fit.
 
Schmeichel - can throw out as far as Onana can pass :lol:

Ferdinand
Vidic
Stam

 Irwin
Keane
Scholes - Late 20s Paul
Beckham

Giggs
Rooney - 18 year old Wayne
Nistelrooy


Thinking about suitability for role I'd love Giggs at LWB but can't see it working.

Evra seems perfect for LWB, but Irwins two foot ability and brain would be a perfect balance for Scholes being a more attacking minded CM.

Tevez if he wasn't a fool would be a perfect 10 in this formation.

Ronaldo would be glorious as either 10 version or Striker, but Nistelrooy will benefit massively from the creation and directness behind him.

On another note, Juan Seba Veron at 10. I'd start drooling that he could finally click. But then Cantona should have the nod.

I've always like 343, 352 variants. But in a 343 we are going to struggle nowadays to create and understand when to move. But this past team wouldn't!
 
Interesting to see so many choose Ronaldo. Nothing even close to the required work rate for an Amorim team.
Yeah sort of my point. Obviously you give Amorim 07/08 Ronaldo he's not benching him or making him run around pressing like a dog, he'd adapt the system accordingly. But that's boring in the context of the question, more fun to choose players who like for like fit what he already does.
 
Interesting to see so many choose Ronaldo. Nothing even close to the required work rate for an Amorim team.
For the absolute havoc he would wreak on the opposition, I think Amorim would cut him some defensive slack.
 
Interesting to see so many choose Ronaldo. Nothing even close to the required work rate for an Amorim team.

I hope you're not suggesting that a prime Ronaldo doesn't get into an Amorim team?
 
---------------------------Taibi
------------Prunier----May----Buttner
Bebe------Gibson----------Djemba-------Obertan
------Chadwick----Dong-----Manucho
 
How good would Ferguson be if he a head full of thick black hair, a beard and darker skin tone and wore an armband?
 
Doing this as the exercise it is and thinking of the 3-4-3 and what it asks of each player is very different from just putting our best players down and forcing them into positions they wouldn't be particularly optimised to play in. Seeing a lot of Vidic and Stam as left and right CB's, for example. Distribution is not there for either in those positions nor does Vidic have the pace to play LCB with massive open space left in front of him. There's midfield and what the 4 in that system have to do, although our midfielders of the highest echelon cover that rather easily. The central attacking hub is an interesting affair. I'll try two teams.

All time:

-------------------------------------------------------------------------Schmeichel
--------------------------------------Varane--------------------------Ferdinand-----------------------Edwards
------------------------------------------------------Keane-----------------------------------Robson
Beckham---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Giggs
-------------------------------------------------------Best--------------------------------------Charlton
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Law

Glaring omission in no Ronaldo, but he's not a wingback, and certainly wouldn't be better at it than either of these two, and he doesn't have the two way intensity or aggression for the roles behind the striker. Best, like Giggs, was a great tackler, was tenacious and had the ability to turn his own tackles into attacking forays. Charlton needs no explanation. Edwards and Varane for the left and right CB roles for their mobility and ability to distribute. No Scholes because Keane Robson is a joke and the energy through that midfield is insane. Nobody is better than Law for the intense, tightly packed and lethal striker role. He will do everything needed, on both sides of the ball and the synergy of that front 3 is the best in English football history.

Modern:

-------------------------------------------------------------------------Van der Sar
--------------------------------------Varane--------------------------Ferdinand-----------------------Blind
------------------------------------------------------Keane-----------------------------------Carrick
Beckham---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Giggs
-------------------------------------------------------Yorke--------------------------------------Cantona
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------Rooney

Modern is a lot harder, especially at LCB and the partner for Keane. Opted for Carrick because he can sit and also help Blind, who has the intelligence but his physical prowess would be the most tested of them all. Again no Ronaldo as the version that was here was a winger or wing-forward, not a striker, and he's not better at 2-way play than the two flankers here. Yorke could be switched to top and Rooney played behind, but that front three would interchange anyway.

3-4-3 of Amorim's kind relies on extremely high intensity and despite Scholes being a better player than Carrick, he's not got the legs or cover to play over what's there. Even have half a mind to switch Carrick for Matic for the extra physical strength and power.
Ah I didn't think about Varane because I sort of opted for players in their United versions and don't think that version of Varane would work (he didn't love playing that high up the pitch or aggressively by the time we had him. Was far more comfortable a bit deeper and being an elite box defender). Prime RM Varane obviously would be ideal as one of the CB's though.
 
I hope you're not suggesting that a prime Ronaldo doesn't get into an Amorim team?
Think moreso his point is who "fits the best" into the system, which Ronaldo doesn't considering how much running Amorim has had his teams Sporting teams do. If we were just making an XI then yeah stick CR7 in there somwhere and Amorim won't give a feck about his lack of pressing because he'll just win matches on his own to make up for it, but that's far less fun to assume the system gets to be adapted just to fit the best players.
 
---------------------------Taibi
------------Prunier----May----Buttner
Bebe------Gibson----------Djemba-------Obertan
------Chadwick----Dong-----Manucho

Unbelievable David May slander :lol:
 
Ah I didn't think about Varane because I sort of opted for players in their United versions and don't think that version of Varane would work (he didn't love playing that high up the pitch or aggressively by the time we had him. Was far more comfortable a bit deeper and being an elite box defender). Prime RM Varane obviously would be ideal as one of the CB's though.
Distribution on the RCB side is actually really difficult as we've not had players suited to that kind of role much, if barely at all. Could put Rio there, but that's suboptimal and you lose so much if he's not the one in the middle. I went for Varane because he's the best at it out of a bad bunch of distributors who are exceptional defenders. Can't really see an elite solution outside of the aforementioned, which then weakens the centre.
 
For his day, yeah kind of. He certainly wasn't afraid to put in a tackle, though many often feared the result. I do remember him racking up interceptions in one of his later season too. Personally I'd just have him next to Keane in midfield.
Yeah but will he work in an Amorim system and his diamond/pentagon system?
 
Distribution on the RCB side is actually really difficult as we've not had players suited to that kind of role much, if barely at all. Could put Rio there, but that's suboptimal and you lose so much if he's not the one in the middle. I went for Varane because he's the best at it out of a bad bunch of distributors who are exceptional defenders. Can't really see an elite solution outside of the aforementioned, which then weakens the centre.

Yeah CB's would certainly be the biggest conundrum of the team, I think the rest of the positions have plenty of top quality ideal fits.

The true answer is that old school CB's just weren't tasked with the same amount of responsibility in possession as they are now, so not many of them really were forced to get better at it. I think a few were technically good enough that they could learn though.