Ruben Amorim will be surprised by the severity of the teething problems at the start of his Manchester United reign, according to Rio Ferdinand. The former United defender doesn't think Amorim entirely understood the task he was inheriting from Erik ten Hag when he decided to walk away from his dominant Sporting team.
Monday's spiritless 2-0 defeat against Newcastle United at Old Trafford marked a fourth in a row in all competitions and five in six in the Premier League.
United will enter 2025 languishing in 14th, just seven points above the relegation zone, after winning six and losing nine of their 19 league matches.
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Amorim maintains that he will persist with his system, considering that is what he was brought to Old Trafford to instil, and Ferdinand agrees with his stance.
Although the ex-United No. 5 admits that Amorim will be struck by just how much his players are struggling to meet his demands despite the lack of training sessions amid a hectic winter fixture schedule.
"You look at him, and you go, 'He still seems quite confident [in the] long-term. He's not going to change his short-term ideas'. And I totally agree," Ferdinand explained on Rio Ferdinand Presents.
"If he changes and goes back to what they were doing before... it's not like they were winning! So why would he go back to what the players are more comfortable with?
"I think his whole thinking - and I've got to agree with him - is that if this team were trained and understood the system, then I think they have a chance of being able to carry out what he wants.
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"I don't think we can expect Amorim to go back to type, to what they were playing before, to try and steady the ship because it wasn't a steady ship anyway.
"I genuinely believe he has to keep doing what he's doing. He said there's going to be teething problems - maybe not as much as what we're getting now - but I don't think he understood what he was getting into.
"The scars that a lot of the players have as individuals - and as a team - are so big and so deep, it's going to take a lot of time to get back."
Amorim named Casemiro and Christian Eriksen his midfield two against Newcastle but made a tactical tweak after just half an hour as the visitors ran rings around the duo.
While Ferdinand suggested that neither player suits Amorim's vision, he believes that both would look better with more time on the training pitch.
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He added: "I think we're looking at two players in this team who came under a lot of criticism after yesterday: Casemiro and Eriksen.
"One of the key elements to this system is that it needs legs and it needs physicality. Eriksen and Casemiro are probably two of the weakest parts of their games, so that doesn't help.
"But I would still argue that if they were able to train and he was able to implement his philosophies, then those two players wouldn't look so out of place.
"So I don't think it's as simple as 'Let's get two more mobile players in there, and it'll all be better'. I still think we'll have the same issues."
