'Anything's possible' - Ayden Heaven lifts lid on Ruben Amorim's formation changes and makes bold claim about Man Utd's future

Newcastle pushed for an equaliser, and struck the woodwork in the second half, but United managed to hold out for all the spoils and kept just their second clean sheet of the season after Dorgu's fine first-half finish. Heaven, meanwhile, played the full 90 minutes on just his fifth start of the season in a much-changed United setup.

Amorim, who has remained committed to a three-man backline since his appointment last November, opted to surprise Newcastle and deployed a 4-2-3-1 system with Heaven partnering Lisandro Martinez at the heart of the defence. Friday's game marked the Argentine's first league start since suffering an ACL injury against Crystal Palace back in February as the makeshift pairing kept the Magpies attack at bay.

And after the win over Newcastle, a beaming Heaven lifted the lid on Amorim's formation changes and made a bold claim about United, insisting that a club of their stature "belong" in Europe.

Speaking to Sky Sports on Friday night, Heaven was initially thrilled about the clean sheet and praised Dorgu for his performance. "Finally, clean sheet, we've been waiting for this, and I'm just so happy. This guy [Patrick Dorgu] here helped us get there, so thankful to everyone that helped us," the 19-year-old said.

Meanwhile, on a change of system in defence, Heaven added: "It was different again, I was playing on the right side, obviously, my weaker foot. The manager, we play loads of formations with him, whatever he does we know it's going to work, you saw today. I'm so proud of the team."

Amorim discussed the change in setup with the official United website after the Newcastle win, stating: "I think, in the first half, we showed that, I felt it was the only way to create more danger and to have opportunities, with a back four. Lots of guys inside, even to keep the ball. I remember the game last year [against Newcastle], we lost one against one, outside. So we just tried to imagine the game to help the players feel comfortable."

Victory over Newcastle saw United move up to fifth place, level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea, who face in-form Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge on Saturday evening. And Heaven has made a bold claim about United's future, suggesting that the Manchester giants can go as far as challenging for the Premier League title.

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The centre-back believes that a team of United's stature belongs in Europe, before talking up a possible title charge, adding: "I think as Manchester United, we belong in Europe. We want to get back there next season so we can even push for top four, possibly win the league, anything's possible. We want to keep trying."

United, though, do need to rectify their inconsistency if they are to challenge for top honours. While Amorim has overseen just two defeats in United's last 12 matches, victory over Newcastle was just United's third in their last nine.

And after the gritty win against the Magpies, Amorim discussed how the team had to "suffer, all together" in a testing showing against Newcastle. "We played two games in one. We had to suffer, all together, in the stadium and in the game. It was really difficult for us. We did good in the first half but, in the second half, we just defend and try to do something with [Matheus] Cunha," Amorim said.

"We had our opportunities with transitions but it was a good win. I had so many games here, saying we played really well but didn't get the three points. Today was the opposite. We suffered together and managed to win the game."

Following the Boxing Day triumph over Newcastle, United welcome Wolves to Old Trafford in midweek. Wolves, who face Liverpool today, are currently mired on a 10-game Premier League losing streak, which includes a 4-1 thumping at the hands of United at Molineux earlier this month. 

Amorim's side then kick off 2026 with back-to-back trips to newly promoted pair Leeds and Burnley as they look to boost their top-four chances.