In a bombshell revelation that’s got the Premier League buzzing like a beehive on steroids, Manchester United’s Portuguese mastermind Ruben Amorim has dropped a truth bomb that’s equal parts cheeky and cunning. After his Red Devils pulled off a gritty 2-1 comeback against Crystal Palace on Sunday, Amorim casually admitted that United’s recent surge in set-piece goals isn’t some tactical sorcery from his Sporting Lisbon playbook—it’s straight-up “stealing” from their fiercest rivals. Yes, you read that right: the man who’s barely warmed his Old Trafford seat is out here pilfering ideas from Arsenal, Chelsea, and the rest of the pack to turn dead balls into deadly weapons. But is this genius espionage the key to United’s revival, or just the tip of a tactical iceberg that’s about to sink the league?

Picture this: Selhurst Park, late November chill cutting through the South London fog, Crystal Palace up 1-0 courtesy of Jean-Philippe Mateta’s spot-kick coolness. United’s first half? A snoozefest. Expected Goals from open play: a pathetic 0.01. Fans on their phones, half-dreaming of the holiday turkey. Then, halftime whistle blows, Amorim works his magic in the locker room, and boom—the second half erupts like a fireworks finale. Joshua Zirkzee volleys home from a Bruno Fernandes free-kick at the 54th minute, his first Premier League strike in over a year, swiveling like a man possessed to bury it from a razor-thin angle. Eighteen minutes later, Mason Mount rifles a low daisy-cutter past Dean Henderson after another Fernandes dead-ball special catches Palace napping. 2-1 United. Game over. Selhurst silent.

But here’s the kicker—those weren’t flukes born from Amorim’s whiteboard wizardry. In the post-match presser, the 40-year-old tactician leaned into the mic with a grin that screamed “caught me,” and spilled: “We work a lot. We have more time to work, we work a lot and we learn a lot in England. I think you are used to seeing that, but when you come for the Premier League you learn a lot with other teams how to do it and we are stealing a lot of things to score goals.” Stealing? From who? Amorim didn’t name names, but the stats scream the culprits. United have now bagged 10 set-piece goals this season (excluding pens), tying Arsenal for the league lead. Seven of their 10 away strikes? Dead-ball gold. Chelsea’s right there with them on the away front, but United’s suddenly the sneaky assassins no one saw coming.

Dig deeper, and it’s clear Amorim’s been playing spy games since day one at Carrington. Fresh off his Sporting triumph—where set-pieces were a staple but not this savage—he’s turned United’s coaching room into a Premier League VHS library. Sources whisper that assistant Carlos Fernandes, who’s been barking orders from the technical area during every corner and free-kick like a caffeinated drill sergeant, pores over footage from the Gunners’ Mikel Arteta (those intricate short corners that bamboozle markers) and the Blues’ Enzo Maresca (quick traps and overloads that turn routines into routs). Even Tottenham’s Ange Postecoglou gets a nod for his aggressive inswingers. “We’re not reinventing the wheel,” one United insider quipped. “We’re just nicking the best spokes and fitting them to our chariot.”

The results? Electric. Rewind to early November: draws against Tottenham and Nottingham Forest, both salvaged by corner-kick crackers. Against Everton last Monday? A frustrating 1-0 loss to 10 men, but Zirkzee was inches from a set-piece screamer. Palace was the payoff—a masterclass in exploitation. Fernandes, the set-piece maestro with a wand for a right boot, clipped the first free-kick high and dipping, Zirkzee ghosting in unmarked for the volley that echoed like thunder. The second? A cheeky quick-touch from Bruno to Mount, who unleashed a 20-yard howitzer while Palace’s wall was still forming. “We exploited their tiredness,” Amorim added slyly, nodding to Palace’s midweek Conference League slog. “Three days rest? They looked like zombies. Our legs were fresh—thanks to no Europe yet.”

But let’s not gloss over the grit. This isn’t just theft; it’s evolution under pressure. Amorim arrived in October amid a storm—United languishing in 13th, fans baying for blood after Erik ten Hag’s sacking. His 3-4-3 system demanded time, but set-pieces became the quick fix, the band-aid that stopped the bleeding. No more European midweeks means extra sessions at Carrington, where the lads drill routines till their boots smoke. “Ruben’s ruthless,” says a club source. “He shows clips of rivals scoring, then says, ‘Why not us? Copy it, tweak it, own it.’” It’s paying dividends: United sit seventh now, three points off the Champions League spots, with momentum building like a storm over the Pennines.

Rivals are fuming—or at least chuckling nervously. Arteta, ever the philosopher, might call it “inspiration.” Pep Guardiola? He’d label it “efficient recycling.” But in a league where every point’s a prize fight, Amorim’s admission has sparked a mini arms race. Expect more encrypted scouting reports, more blurred lines in the coaches’ box. Chelsea’s already tweaking their traps after United mirrored one against Palace. Arsenal? They’ll double-down on decoy runs. “The Premier League’s a thieves’ market,” laughs ex-United winger Ryan Giggs. “Fergie nicked from everyone—why not Ruben?”

Not everyone’s buying the charm. Critics point to United’s open-play woes: that 0.01 xG vs. Palace? Embarrassing. Zirkzee’s goal drought ended, sure, but he’s still a square peg in Rasmus Hojlund’s round-hole role. Mount’s winner was his first since… well, forever in red. And the defense? Leaky as a sieve, conceding from a pen after Casemiro’s needless foul. Amorim knows it: “We need to be more alive from minute one.” But for now, these stolen set-pieces are the lifeline, the sly grin in a season of snarls.

As United gear up for West Ham midweek, then Arsenal on the horizon, Amorim’s pilfering could be the plot twist that rewrites the script. From Lisbon’s flair to Manchester’s grit, he’s blending burglary with brilliance. Stealing tactics? Call it what you want—plagiarism, homage, survival. In the end, goals don’t care about copyrights. They just win games.

And in a league of lions, United’s suddenly got claws. Watch out, England—Ruben’s raiding the playbook, and he’s not asking permission.