If not Joshua Zirkzee, then Manchester United should build around someone like him under Ruben Amorim. They must in order to make his preferred system work.

His strength and instincts to quickly work the ball through the center of the pitch and out through the wings will be key to their success because of how much more effective they are when they switch play.

I talked about this in the preseason after watching Bayern Munich constantly open play by moving the ball horizontally back and forth across the pitch until they got off a clear attempt on goal. It is an exciting way of playing.

It opens compact defenses. They can’t withstand the constant movement and will be forced to spread out. For teams, like Tottenham when they played Bayern Munich in the summer, who do not defend as compactly, it kills them. They can’t withstand it.

The key is having someone in the center of things to help facilitate that movement of the ball back and forth. It is a must to connect both wings. Amorim likes using a back three, with wing-backs down the side. The center has to be solid to withstand the pressure of the opposition’s midfield collapsing.

It is great because that movement means you don’t necessarily need pace down the wings. The movement back and forth will open up ample space for the wingers, and then that opens up the channels in on goal.

Manchester United didn’t look that great in the first half against Everton; I would say partly due to their lack of fitness. They were doing well for the first 20 minutes, but Everton dominated play thereafter until the half.

But Joshua Zirkee should give any United fan hope because he has something extra that many center-forwards don’t have. His movements are sharp when he receives the ball in the pockets. There’s no wasted touches on the turn. He has special qualities with his back to the defender, with his ability to ward off challenges. The pass out to the wide areas of the pitch is crisp, fast, and accurate. We knew this before, but it is no wonder why Bologna performed so well. Thiago Motta built the attack around him; for him, it seems.

Read Ahmed Walid’s piece for The Athletic to view some examples of how Joshua Zirkzee found and created space for others.