Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has suggested that he is more concerned about one Manchester United star than Matheus Cunha or Bryan Mbeumo.
Manchester United will be aiming to claim a vital three points when they welcome Bournemouth to Old Trafford on Monday night.
Ruben Amorim’s team head into the fixture buoyed by one of their most impressive performances under his tenure, a 4–1 win over Wolves that saw Bruno Fernandes score twice, alongside goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Mason Mount.
United have proved hard to overcome in recent weeks, losing just once in their last nine league outings, though only two victories in their previous six matches indicate there is still room for improvement in their overall displays.
Bournemouth, meanwhile, make the trip north after a difficult run of form, having suffered four defeats and picked up two draws from their last six Premier League games. Even so, they can take confidence from their recent visits to Old Trafford, where they have secured 3–0 wins in each of the past two seasons.
Iraola: United star is an “even bigger threat” than Mbeumo and Cunha
United have improved in attack this season and most people are crediting the summer additions of Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Šeško.
Although, Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola believes that Amad is a significant threat to his side and claimed that the Ivorian is ‘even more important’ to United under Amorim.
Amad has become a consistent starter under the Portuguese boss after being ignored by Erik ten Hag. He regularly features at right wingback.
Iraola said: “The signings they have made up front – Mbeumo, Cunha, Sesko- but especially players like Amad, who is now even more important.
“He is an even bigger threat, and we have to be ready to defend difficult duels for the full-backs and for the centre-backs because you have to defend some very good players in open spaces.”
Amad’s importance is clear
Amad and Mbeumo are both important players for United but they are both heading to AFCON soon and it is unknown whether they will even play the game against Bournemouth.
We will not find out until Monday evening, with United looking to try and keep the final decision under wraps in order to get an advantage over Bournemouth in preparations for the game.
But it is clear that Amad is one of United’s biggest threats and he has been developing a strong relationship with Mbeumo on the right side.
That will be interrupted by AFCON and United will need to find a way to win without either of them for a month.
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