Former Manchester United assistant manager Rene Meulensteen has called on Ruben Amorim to use the story of a fan who is refusing to cut his hair until the team wins five in a row as a way to lift his players to new heights in an exclusive interview with compare.bet.
The ex-Fulham boss also commented on the struggles of his fellow Dutchman, Arne Slot, after a torrid run of form for Liverpool, and explained how a manager in his position can turn it around.
However, given their upturn in form, Meulensteen has picked Aston Villa as an opponent who could pile further pain on Liverpool as they seek to break their sequence of losses in the Premier League.
Read the full interview below.
Q: Is it finally clicking for Ruben Amorim at Manchester United or have they benefitted from the recent run of fixtures?
It’s been a bit of both. What is good is that they have now started to put together back-to-back wins. Three in a row, Sunderland, Liverpool and now Brighton. That is very positive for all parties, especially Amorim himself. I think it’s a great base for them looking forward to the Nottingham Forest and Spurs games.
There’s no better medicine than winning. You can always have a look at the manner of how you are winning and who you played against but at the end of the day it creates a different atmosphere around the training ground, during the training sessions, and everyone will feel more relaxed, more positive and that can bring the best out of the team.
That goes hand in hand. The weight of the shirt at Manchester United is heavy and you will feel that with every big club. The players at Liverpool are feeling that now. Suddenly the pressure kicks in, questions begin to be asked and doubt kicks in. That has been the mantra of Manchester United for the last two or three seasons when things are not going your way.
Every player needs to get into a flow of results and build their confidence, and it can all start to click together, and that always makes everything feel a little bit easier.
I was fortunate during my time at Manchester United when winning was the norm. That has slipped away for United which is where the pressure starts, the shirt feels even heavier and the badge starts to weigh the players down, but now they can build on the positives.
Q: Will the squad be aware of TheUnitedStrand’s hair cut challenge and can that make the difference for Amorim in keeping the good times coming?
Yes because this is a fun thing. It lightens the mood. The players can now get together and say to each other, listen, let’s get to four and then let’s get to five so the boy can have his hair cut. They will feel that energy from each other.
It could be a good motivation for the players. I’d even suggest that they should bring him to Carrington and let the players each cut off one pitch of hair at a time. I think you could even bring Sir Alex Ferguson down. I’ve seen him bring his own pair of clippers to Carrington before.
The big difference between now and 15-20 years ago is social media. It can play such a big part in your life and everybody can throw anything on there with no consequences. It can create a bad vibe around the place.
Clubs need to be really clear about this with the players, who need to be aware of what can happen if you keep reading all these negative things because you will start to feel that negativity too.
Winning the five games to give the boy his haircut? That can be an antidote for the whole team.
Q: Do you still believe that United can put themselves into the title race with this run of form?
When I first said that, I’m 100 % sure people were scratching their heads and asking what is he talking about? But the reason why I was saying it, and I still back it now, is that if you look at it United are only six points behind Arsenal. Yes, people sometimes get blindsided by how poor of a start United had but they are starting to gain momentum.
I can see them also beating Forest and Spurs and suddenly that’s five games in a row and they start to look stronger and stronger because Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo are settling in. Sesko is going to get his minutes on the clock. They’re finding their way bit by bit and that confidence will grow.
They’ve got no midweek games, no midweek stress. They don’t have to do a lot of squad rotation. They will grow and grow and grow. I’m telling you, Manchester United could be a surprise package who find themselves in second place soon and suddenly people will be saying what’s going on here and a completely different level of belief kicks in. Not only for the players but the manager as well, and the fans, and Manchester United are this force to be reckoned with again that everybody is looking at slightly differently.
They might not say it themselves, and they might not believe it yet, but I honestly think they can do it. I’ve been one of the biggest critics for the reasons why they haven’t kicked on because of Amorim’s stubbornness with the system but if they do go on a run and everything clicks then you have to hold your hands up and say Amorim, listen, fantastic job. You stuck to your system and it’s working.
Has it got longevity? I still have my doubts. However in sport it can come down to factors you can’t quite put your finger on. Form, flow, karma. Look what’s happening to Liverpool. Last year, nobody would have seen what has happened now. It was just easy sailing. Now they’re in the worst storm they could have ever imagined and maybe don’t know how to get out.
United have had these bad spells and suddenly, for whatever reason, something is starting to fall into place and people gain form and the negatives are turned into positives. That’s the role United can play this season, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see them in contention for the title. I would love to see them emerge from this dark horse position because nobody gave them a dime to do anything this season.
It would be a great position to be in unless suddenly something bad happens and they fall back into a run of not performing and winning. The three wins haven’t cemented the base that we all would love to see just yet.
Q: Antonio Conte’s Chelsea won the Premier League title in part due to not having midweek commitments. Can Amorim use that same advantage this year?
Yes. Do not underestimate the time that Amorim will now have to work with the players and work on the plan for the next opponent rather than managing a two day turnover between games in Europe and in the league. He will now have five to six days turnover. Sometimes seven.
With that time you can work, you can let the players relax a little bit. They can come back fresh, mentally fresh, not tired by travelling. I know all these things add up. It has an impact.
Q: Has Matheus Cunha single-handedly raised the technical level of this United team?
I was very positive about United signing Matheus Cunha. He’s a great player. I think he also has all the mental attributes to play for a club like Manchester United. He’s got that aura. He wants the ball. You can give him the ball and it’s hard to get it off him. He’s raised the ceiling of this United squad and that will rub off on other players because when they see that Cuna, he’s a player, and Mbeumo is a player too, it lifts everyone to push their own games.
I still find it a shame seeing Cunha and Mbeumo together with Bruno Fernandes having to play in that deeper role because if you could have Bruno in a more advanced position where he can really roam around as we are used to, there are even more goals there playing with Cunha, Mbeumo and Sesko, without a shadow of a doubt.
The challenge now for Cunha is making sure that he shows that consistency that Manchester United need now, week in and week out. That is what made United great under Sir Alex Ferguson. We had a good squad, we had good players, and a good balance in the squad, it was the performance. They were so consistent, no matter who we played in the Premier League, in the FA Cup or any other cups or Champions League, the players performed. That is what United need to get back to, starting with Nottingham Forest and Spurs.
Q: Can Matheus Cunha be the catalyst for the Ruben Amorim era to really take off?
To be fairly honest, I think Bruno Fernandes has been that catalyst for Amorim.
We talk about consistency. Bruno delivered in a very difficult time, time and time again, but Cunha can add that extra factor now too, and so can Mbeumo, and I do think we have not yet seen what Sesko will do in a United shirt. He is very, very young. He’s still learning his trade. He’s still learning. But he is already in a better place than Hojlund.
Of course, it’s always better to come into a winning team rather than a team that’s struggling, and you don’t know what you get but that is hopefully the turning point we’re gonna see over the next few weeks.
