Man Utd and Tottenham struggling but are Ruben Amorim and Ange Postecoglou right to stick to their philosophies?

Adapt or die? Ruben Amorim and Ange Postecoglou seem intent to fall on their sword rather than alter their approaches in the face of adversity.

“I’m not going to change the way I see the game. I’m very clear on that,” said Amorim, after his Man Utd side lost 3-1 at home to Brighton on Sunday, slumping to a sixth Premier League defeat of the season at Old Trafford.

He is determined to make the 3-4-2-1 structure which delivered him so much success at Sporting work – no matter what it takes.

“The players are going to suffer, I’m sorry, the fans are going to suffer,” he continued. “I have one way of doing things, I know it’s going to [bring] results.”

At the same time, a depleted Tottenham were digesting a 3-2 loss at Everton, which had seen them concede three times in the first half to the Premier League’s second-worst attack.

Postecoglou has flexibility on formations – he started with a back three at Goodison Park before throwing it out of the window at half-time. But the front-foot approach, with the ball or without it, is non-negotiable.

Even if it leads to Iliman Ndiaye running away from Archie Gray and past Radu Dragusin to score. Or Arsenal pinning Spurs back in their defensive third as they repeatedly try and fail to play through their rivals’ press, as happened in midweek.

Amorim will point to his remarkable record as a two-time title winner at Sporting in Portugal, which earned him his move to United, as evidence of why he should stand by his idea.

Similarly, Postecoglou has pointed out you don’t make it from Australia to the Premier League without a clear philosophy.

Before he had taken charge of a match in England’s top flight, he said he would not alter his approach, regardless of the situation. Even if Spurs were hanging onto a 1-0 lead late on in a crucial game. He has been unwavering in that ever since, despite injuries currently accounting for 80 per cent of his first-choice defence.

“In any sport, when I see teams kind of break the traditional mould, that’s when people get really uneasy about it – and that’s when you know, ‘OK, this could be something special'”, he said during a pre-season sitdown at the Spurs training ground in August 2023.

“It’s not guaranteed to work. It could all fall to pieces and end up in tears. But when you make people uneasy and uncomfortable with what they see it probably means you’re breaking new ground and I love that in anything in life.

“That’s where the special stuff exists and that’s the kind of space I’m in.”

Unfortunately for Postecoglou and Spurs, the space they’re in right now is 15th.

United aren’t much better placed, just a couple of positions and points ahead. Both miles from where they want to be.

It’s a testing time for their commitment to their ideals, with both coaches routinely asked: would it not just be better to try something different for now? To make their lives easier in the short term? To protect inexperienced players, to sit back and plug a leaky defence, or wait until you have made signings better suited to your style?

Both men have little time for such suggestions.

Later on Sunday, Manchester City moved back into the top four with a thumping win at Ipswich, which had Pep Guardiola revelling in the return of his players’ joy for the game. City had their verve again and perhaps their miserable months are behind them.

But while this has largely been a season to forget so far for City, Guardiola stands as a point of difference to the approaches of Amorim at United and Postecoglou at Tottenham. While the trio share similar ideas in the way they like to play the game, Guardiola’s success at City has come in different ways.

From harnessing Sergio Aguero to winning the Premier League without a striker and then hiring the most lethal hitman of them all in Erling Haaland, the centrepiece of Guardiola’s attack has transformed and then transformed again.

On the flanks there have been wide playmakers, inverted wingers and now, with Jeremy Doku, one-on-one dribblers. Behind them, the profile of full-backs have evolved from flying overlappers to players comfortable enough on the ball to step into central midfield. At times in recent seasons the entire backline has been made up of centre-backs.

Of course, Guardiola has been given license, funds and time to shape his side to meet the challenges he faces. Amorim is still working with a squad assembled for Erik ten Hag, while Postecoglou’s supporters will say he hasn’t been backed sufficiently by Daniel Levy and co.

But it is interesting to note the most successful Premier League manager of the past decade has reimagined his side over and over again, while the two coaches staunchly wedded to their one idea – regardless of injuries, personnel or circumstances – currently languish just above the relegation zone.

Only time will tell whether their stubbornness is well placed.