Four Manchester United stars are fighting for their futures under Amorim despite being signed by Erik ten Hag within the last three years.
Rúben Amorim’s side are preparing for a challenging stretch of fixtures following the international break, with several Manchester United players having taken the opportunity to rest and recharge.
While the likes of Bruno Fernandes, Rasmus Højlund, and Matthijs de Ligt were away on international duty, others such as Mason Mount and Joshua Zirkzee remained in Manchester, using the time to focus on fitness and recovery.
United returned to full training on Friday morning, though a few players—including Manuel Ugarte, Noussair Mazraoui, and Victor Lindelöf—were not present. They had featured for their countries as recently as Tuesday evening.
A hectic run lies ahead, beginning with a trip to Nottingham Forest on 1 April, followed by a Manchester Derby later in the week and a Europa League quarter-final showdown with Olympique Lyonnais across two legs.
Four stars fighting for their future
With the final stretch of the 2024/25 season providing almost two fixtures a week – depending on how far United can go in the Europa League – Amorim will need to utilise the full breadth of his squad.
With this in mind, The Mirror have detailed four United players who will be fighting for their futures in the next two months as United prepare for the summer transfer window.
Zirkzee has had a mixed start to life at Old Trafford following his £36 million transfer from Bologna last summer. Despite his recent good form, there have been questions over where he fits long-term within Amorim’s attack – the next few months may be crucial for the Dutchman.
Another attacking player listed is Mount. Amorim has been clear in expressing his love for the English midfielder’s abilities. Still, with his injuries making him unreliable, he is one who the club may see as a player to cut their losses on in the summer, and he must look to prove many wrong upon his return.
On the other end of the pitch, André Onana’s future at Old Trafford has been cast into significant doubt in the last few weeks. Amid rumours that the player has been unsettled in the last few months and Amorim reportedly looking to sign a new goalkeeper, the Cameroon international may be playing his final few fixtures at the club.
Finally, the other two players mentioned are two of the club’s high-value loanees, Marcus Rashford and Antony. Despite good performances since exiting Old Trafford in January, it feels as if both players are now destined to leave permanently after falling out of favour with the head coach.
Ten Hag’s legacy is quickly diminishing
While former United boss Erik ten Hag won two trophies in his two full seasons at the club, his legacy is quickly becoming one of overspending and underachieving.
He finished 3rd in the league during his first season in charge, but with the club injecting over £600 million into his squad across five transfer windows, he failed to deliver what he promised.
Although the issues at United that Ten Hag suffered from run much deeper than just the manager, the fact that four of his signings, Zirkzee, Mount, Onana, and Antony, are already in jeopardy at Old Trafford speaks volumes.
His trophies will never be forgotten, especially gifting United their first title in over six years with his 2023 Carabao Cup win, but with an entirely new United forming from top to bottom, the legacy is he established at United is being quickly torn apart and replaced by Amorim.
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