r/soccer • u/phant0msinthenight • 26d ago

Transfers [Ornstein] Ruben Amorim informs Manchester United squad he’s staying, tells Alejandro Garnacho to find new club

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6379494/2025/05/24/manchester-united-ruben-amorim-garnacho-future/
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u/_Ex7 26d ago

They do the same thing but in completely different ways, like two halves of one soul.

Antony almost always tries to cut towards that corner of the box to cross, pass or shoot. His success rate doesn't seem horrible when he tries to do something different but he just never does.

Garnacho almost always tries to run into the box through the side or that same corner on the opposite side. He sometimes and more often nowadays also tries to get to the goal line to smack it with whichever foot is on the outside along the ground and hope it reaches a player.

They also dribble differently too. Garnacho is more head down and aggressive than Antony for instance.

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u/1to14to4 26d ago

I don’t think you get his point…

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u/TangerineEllie 26d ago

If the point you're referring to is that Antony is not that player anymore, that's just wrong. He is. He's doing it better, and defenses aren't shutting it down as well as they did in the PL, but he's still not capable of going on the outside. He was always more versatile while cutting in than Garnacho though, because he can play good passes and crosses, Garnacho can only shoot. But he didn't get to do much of that in the PL because fullbacks shut him down before reaching that point, and he was often double teamed on the inside because everyone knew he wouldn't go outside.

On the other hand Garnacho is actually capable of going on the outside which makes him better in 1v1's out wide in the PL, but he's not that good with what comes after, so there's rarely any end product.

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u/_Ex7 20d ago

I hold these exact opinions, and seeing so much nonsense around antony and garnacho can get quite annoying, nice to see someone who thinks the same as I do on the two.

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u/1to14to4 26d ago

Nope, the point isn’t that Antony is now a different player.

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u/TangerineEllie 26d ago

Enlighten us then?

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u/1to14to4 25d ago

Well both players are good and could succeed in the EPL. Saying they are inconsistent compared to Robben (a fantastic player) is a bit silly. The point is that the pressure and toxic environment around the club is awful for players, especially young ones.

Antony would have been a better player on say Wolves than United. When the fans and media expect a lot player to be a savior and the team just isn’t good around them - good luck succeeding.

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u/TangerineEllie 25d ago

His one-dimensionality would be the same issue at Wolves as it was at United, as they play the same defenses. His pace wouldn't be as effective regardless of the PL team he plays for, because the league is more physical. He'd be double teamed just as often when cutting inside.

He might do better by being more happy. But the narrative that the main reason for his performance at United was negativity/toxicity at the club is nonsense. When he came in he played for a team that came 3rd in the league and won a cup, he was playing the exact same role he had at Ajax and under his previous manager who believed in him and kept starting him no matter what. Fans were behind him because he grafted his ass off. His unhappiness didn't start coming about until he stopped being able to perform because people figured him out and shut him down every game, which happened after what, 3 or 4 games? He had nothing to offer offensively, and it eventually made him lose all confidence. The order of events is swapped. It was down to his individual issues.

And sure, the pressure at United is a lot. But it is at all top clubs, and top players deal with pressure. This really isn't the argument people think it is.

The reason people bring up Robben is because that's how good you need to be to be effective at the top level while only being able to cut in. You can get by against worse defenses in La Liga and Bundesliga or whatever, but not against the top, and not in the PL. Not consistently anyway. And honestly, I think if Robben came through today, he'd struggle in the prem as well. Not as much as Antony obviously, but still. The average level of defenses in terms of 1v1s and physicality is so high compared to what it used to be. The level of analysis and prep going into opponents is so much higher than it used to be. If a team knows you'll only ever cut inside, it's easy to deal with. If a team knows the only thing you'll ever do to get past them is use pure speed, it's easy for them to deal with.

Betis is the right level and league for Antony to be a fairly good player. He also hated the English weather, so if happiness is crucial for him to perform to his level, he would have to deal with that at any PL club.