The new Red Devils coach has a wealth of options up front as he considers the best starting XI for his famous 3-4-3 shape
Sunday night was a good one for Ruben Amorim. He enjoyed a sensational farewell with Sporting CP as his side produced a whirlwind comeback against Braga to win 4-2, giving him the perfect send off before beginning work as Manchester United boss. A couple of hours earlier, his new team showed that they are not quite the basket case he might have imagined as United beat Leicester City 3-0, recording their joint-best league win of the season and their biggest league win at Old Trafford for eight months.
And when Amorim came to watch the United highlights, the 39-year-old would have witnessed some brilliant play from the forwards who struggled so much under his predecessor Erik ten Hag. Bruno Fernandes scored his first league goal of the season from open play and made the second, while Amad Diallo, who barely got a look in under Ten Hag, produced another thrilling performance after inspiring a largely uninspired team to victory over PAOK.
A hugely satisfying win was made even better by a stupendous goal from Alejandro Garnacho, who was so disappointed with his own previous performances and fan criticism that he didn't want to celebrate it. Amad's brilliant displays in the last two games have catapulted him to the front of the queue of United's wingers, while Garnacho's show-stopping strike means he should also be starting on the other flank in Amorim's first match. And that leaves Marcus Rashford on the backfoot, trying to keep up with the two explosive wingers in a race to impress the new coach…
AFPElectric Amad
Amad has a curious status at United in that he looks and feels like a young emerging talent, when he is actually one of the longest-serving players at the club. Only five players in the current squad were already there when he joined United from Atalanta in January 2021. Amorim will be the sixth coach (including interims) he has worked under. And yet Sunday was just his 10th Premier League start, his 13th in a competitive game.
He quickly showed that he should have played far more often. Within a couple of minutes, the Ivorian had embarrassed the Leicester defence, dragging Boubakary Soumare all over the place on the right wing before winning a free-kick. Later, his tenacity saw him chase a long ball over the top and race downfield to win a throw in the final third. It led to him setting up the opening goal for Fernandes with a delightful backheel.
Amad produced another thrilling moment before half-time, ripping through the middle of the pitch and taking on four players before hammering the ball at goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.
Every time he got on the ball, the crowd got excited. They had just seen him drag the team to victory against PAOK, which was his first start for more than a month. He had come off injured in the Europa League game and there were doubts about whether he would be ready in time to face Leicester. But Ruud van Nistelrooy rewarded the forward for his recent displays and Amad repaid his faith.
AdvertisementGettyMaking his own luck
"He [Amad] is a great character, a hard worker, he shows it in every training session,” the interim boss said after Amad’s double against PAOK. "He also puts in extra work every day in training. He comes to me and wants to do extra finishing, crossing, one versus one, how he can improve his shooting, heading. He is constantly focused on learning, getting better, very motivated to get the most from his career."
Amad had looked livid on his previous outing in the Europa League after being left out of the starting line-up by Ten Hag against Fenerbahce, while he was then overlooked as the coach instead brought on Antony when chasing a winner in Turkey. When Amad was eventually brought on for the final few minutes after Antony suffered an injury, he had to be calmed down by assistants Rene Hake and Van Nistelrooy.
Ten Hag had justified that call by saying Antony had been performing well in training. That might have been the case, but the Brazilian consistently performs terribly on the pitch, so it was little wonder that Amad was exasperated to find himself behind the flop forward, having already fallen behind Rashford and Garnacho in the pecking order. Amad remarked "This season I have been unlucky," but it looks like his luck is turning.
"It was a great night for him as someone who is in and out. He needs to cement a place and I think tonight has gone a long way to doing that," Paul Scholes said on after the PAOK win. "He was excellent, the first 20 minutes he looked the sharpest player on the pitch and went on to prove that in the second half. He has come in and made a real stake for that position."
Getty Images SportSuffering for his art
Amad began the Leicester game on the right wing after winning the battle with Garnacho, who has had a strange season, looking talismanic one minute and clumsy the next. He had been experiencing a mini-crisis of confidence, missing several glaring chances in the defeat at West Ham – which proved to be Ten Hag's final game – and in the draw against Chelsea.
He looked to be having another frustrating afternoon on Sunday when he dashed into the area and got behind a Leicester player only to fumble the ball out of play. The Foxes fans delighted in Garnacho's gaffe, but just a few minutes later he shut them up with his exquisite strike, a reminder of his capacity to make the difference with one swing of his boot.
As he demonstrated with his Goal-of-the-Season-winning bicycle kick against Everton, Garnacho is capable of pulling off magical things on the pitch. He often steps it up in the biggest games, having scored in the FA Cup final and Community Shield against Manchester City at Wembley. He still needs to produce on a regular basis and clearly wants to do so, which is why he looked sad when he scored his magnificent goal. His travails are reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo's first three seasons at United, and it is no secret that he idolises the Portuguese. Garnacho at times looks like a tortured genius, agonising over his art.
"Garnacho scored a banger but didn’t celebrate like he should because he thinks he has lost faith from some fans," explained Fernandes. "I told him people will always moan but lots of people like you and enjoy what you do. I told him to celebrate, it was something special. He is a special player, we have difference-makers."
Van Nistelrooy revealed he had given an explanation to Garnacho for his decision to start him on the bench, saying: "He has played a lot of minutes and I wanted him to make an impact off the bench." Amorim might also want to tread carefully with Garnacho. He is arguably the player in the squad with the highest ceiling, but his talent and ego must be managed carefully.
Getty Images SportGround to make up
While Garnacho had a happy ending to the game, Rashford's day ended in the 57th minute when he was replaced by the Argentine. And for the fifth start in a row, he left the pitch without contributing to a goal, having rarely looked like creating any danger. He had no shots, while his crosses kept on hitting the first line of defence.
In the first half, Rashford tried to take on Soumare and ran the ball out of play. In the second, he ran on to a pass from Manuel Ugarte and miscontrolled it out of play, to the frustration of the Uruguayan. Rashford normally makes fast starts in games before fading, but he never got going on Sunday. Of United's four wingers, he looks to be firmly third in terms of form, below Amad and Garnacho but comfortably ahead of Antony.
Rashford enjoyed a shield of protection under Ten Hag, as he had enjoyed his best-ever season in the Dutchman's first campaign, which led to him signing his bumper new contract in July 2023. Amorim will have no motivation to show him the same loyalty, and Rashford will have to earn his place on merit. The only hope is that the injection of new energy around the club which Amorim will bring will benefit the homegrown forward, as it did when Ten Hag arrived.
