During the first half of the game, at the 33rd minute, Zirkzee was substituted and rushed straight to the locker room. He later returned to the bench wearing a coat. Eager to showcase his skills in front of the home fans, he unexpectedly ended up retreating in disarray, with his frustration clearly visible on his face. Players who perform poorly can seek solace on the bench, but Amorim had to remain on the sidelines, enduring the scorching gaze of angry fans as the price for his tactical blunder.
In the first 20 minutes of the match, Newcastle entered the penalty area 10 times, scoring 2 goals from 5 shots, while Manchester United never penetrated their opponent's penalty area during this period, appearing very passive on the field. Through strong confrontations to gain possession, they patiently organized outside the Red Devils' defense, with hardly any hindrance in continuous lateral passes, completing crosses in front of the helpless red-clad wing-backs, ultimately sounding an air raid alarm over Lisandro Martinez... The two goals scored by Newcastle followed the same process, with Eddie Howe's offensive tactics perfectly exploiting Manchester United's weaknesses, and Amorim's rotation decisions fell right into their hands.
Since the big win against Everton, Manchester United has been plagued by misfortune in multiple consecutive matches. In the Manchester derby, there were incidents of key players leaving early and own-goal assists, and when visiting Molineux, they received a red card for "helping teammates win." Vitor Pereira sincerely thanked the Red Devils for their "gift" in the post-match interview last round, expressing pity for Amorim.
Although the loss to Wolves was disappointing, Amorim was satisfied with the team's performance during the equal number of players stage. After a month of intensive training, they finally found the optimal lineup solution.
Unfortunately, Bruno Fernandes and Ugart were both absent from this match due to suspension, and Rashford and Garnacho had just been demoted. Amorim had no choice but to start Zirkzee and Eriksen, and as expected, the two players became the breakthrough points for Newcastle's attack, marking the arrival of a record-breaking night.
