Boss Ruben Amorim argues that altering Man Utd's formation due to external pressure would have signaled "the end" for him.
In a first against Newcastle United, Amorim moved away from his customary three-at-the-back formation with wing-backs and chose to use an standard back four with two central midfielders.
Amorim acknowledged this effectively functioned as a six-man defensive block in the closing phase as his side clung on for a crucial result - securing just their second clean sheet of the campaign.
Despite he once memorably stated that even the Pope could pressure him to tweak his system, Amorim insists the ability to play with different setups has remained part of his plan.
Nevertheless, he stresses he could solely make the switch when his team were faring sufficiently well - lest it would look as if he was giving in to external noise.
"At the time I arrived here the previous campaign, I recognized perhaps I lacked the personnel to play well in that system, but it was the commencement of a journey," he commented.
"Our aim was to forge an identity. Now is a separate moment. We lack a lot of personnel, and we have to adapt, so they see the reason we are switching things up.
"It is not because of the influence of journalists, or the supporters.
"Whenever you talk about changing the formation repeatedly, I can't make a change because the squad will understand I'm changing because of external voices and I believe that is the downfall for the manager.
"Once we are playing well in our system, that becomes the right time to adapt.
"We are going to become a more complete side because when all the personnel are back, we are not going to use a back three exclusively."
Availability Challenges Continue
With only two wins in their last eight outings prior to beating Newcastle, it is arguable whether Amorim is correct to say his side have been playing well.
He is, though, working with a depleted roster, with multiple first-team players already ruled out for the forthcoming fixture against struggling Wolves.
That number will grow if midfielder Mason Mount fails to recover the injury that forced his exit from the Newcastle game at the interval.
Captain Bruno Fernandes is among those who will be absent for the Wolves clash, despite the fact he is understood to be pressing his boss to let him to make a comeback following his muscle injury.
"Fernandes is already telling me he has to train," revealed Amorim. "However there is no chance he is going to feature against Wolves. Definitely not. You can write that."
The Captain's Leadership Is Unwavering
Nevertheless, the Portuguese star will probably still be a prominent presence, as while most injured stars view matches from a private box, Fernandes was spotted monitoring the warm-ups from the mouth of the player's tunnel before the Newcastle game.
Amorim anticipates his captain to carry on offering insight.
"The guy is a natural leader," he stated. "He must not be that guy that when he is absent, he's not talking and offering advice. He's always communicating. That is the reason he's the captain.
"There are flaws sometimes - his mannerisms he gesticulates - but he has a lot of positive qualities. After he recovers, he heads to observe the rest of the squad practicing. There are a lot of aspects that go unnoticed.
"I'm not sure if he desires my job or not, but he's a born leader. He is a true captain."
Recovery Timeline for Key Players
While the precise timeline for the captain's return - and that of other unavailable stars like Kobbie Mainoo, Matthijs de Ligt, and Harry Maguire - remains unknown, before the conclusion of January, the club will welcome back Noussair Mazraoui, Amad Diallo, and Bryan Mbeumo from international competition.
