Boss Ruben Amorim says that switching Manchester United's tactical system due to external noise would have meant "the finish" for him.
In a first against Newcastle, Amorim ditched his trademark back three setup with wing-backs and chose to field an standard back four shielded by two defensive midfielders.
He himself conceded this at times functioned as a six-man defensive block in the latter phase as his squad held on for a win - securing only their second-ever shutout of the campaign.
While he once famously said that not even the highest authority could force him to change his approach, Amorim insists the capacity to play with varied setups has remained part of his plan.
Yet, he stresses he could solely implement the change when his team were doing at an acceptable level - or else it would seem as if he was succumbing to external noise.
"At the time I arrived here the previous campaign, I understood perhaps I don't have the personnel to perform effectively in that formation, but it was the commencement of a project," he commented.
"The goal was to forge an philosophy. Today is a different juncture. We are missing a lot of players, and we have to be flexible, so they see why we are making changes.
"It is not because of the influence of journalists, or the fans.
"Whenever the press talk about changing the system repeatedly, I cannot make a change because the players will believe I'm altering things because of you and I think that is a disaster for the manager.
"Once we are performing strongly in our preferred setup, that becomes the moment to change.
"We will grow into a stronger team because when all the personnel are available, we are not planning to use three defenders in every match."
Availability Issues Persist
Having just two victories in eight games prior to beating Newcastle, it is arguable whether Amorim is correct to state his team have been in good form.
He is, however, operating with a severely stretched squad, with multiple first-team stars already unavailable for the upcoming fixture against winless Wolves.
That total will increase if midfielder Mason Mount is unable to shake off the injury that led to his exit from the Newcastle game at half-time.
Captain Bruno Fernandes is among those who will miss the Wolves match, even though he is reportedly pressing his manager to allow him to make a comeback following his hamstring injury.
"Fernandes is already insisting he has to train," revealed Amorim. "However there is no chance he is going to feature against Wolves. No chance. You can write that."
The Captain's Leadership Remains
Nevertheless, the Portuguese star will almost certainly continue to be deeply engaged, as whereas most unavailable stars watch matches from the stands, Fernandes was seen keeping a close eye on the pre-match routines from the mouth of the tunnel before the Newcastle game.
Amorim expects his captain to continue offering guidance.
"He is a leader," he stated. "He cannot be the type of player that when he is not playing, he's not talking and speaking. He's constantly speaking. That's why he's the skipper.
"He has negative aspects sometimes - the way he gesticulates - but he has a lot of strengths. Even after he finishes treatment, he heads to observe the rest of the squad training. There are a lot of aspects that go unnoticed.
"I don't know if he wants my job or not, but he's a leader. He is a true captain."
Return Schedule for Key Personnel
While the precise timeline for the captain's comeback - and that of other unavailable players like Kobbie Mainoo, Matthijs de Ligt, and Harry Maguire - remains uncertain, before the conclusion of January, the club will welcome back Noussair Mazraoui, Amad Diallo, and Bryan Mbeumo from continental duty.
