Ruben Amorim's honeymoon period at Manchester United is already over. The Red Devils followed up a humbling 2-0 loss at Arsenal with a 3-2 home defeat against Nottingham Forest on Saturday night, which leaves them 13th in the Premier League table - the club's lowest position after 15 games since the 1986-87 season.
In the build-up to the Forest game, INEOS chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe sat down for a wide-ranging interview with the esteemed 'United We Stand' fanzine', admitting that the club "has become mediocre". United's minority shareholder added: "There is major change to come to achieve elite status."
One "major change" has already been made in the boardroom since then, with United announcing the shock exit of sporting director Dan Ashworth just five months after his initial summer appointment. But to regain "elite status" on the pitch, Amorim will need a sizeable war chest to overhaul the terrible squad he inherited from Erik ten Hag.
United practically gifted all three points to Forest with a litany of unforgivable errors. Amorim has been a breath of fresh air since his arrival at Old Trafford, but it doesn't matter how much he innovates from a tactical perspective if the players are not good enough to execute his plan.