One of Rúben Amorim’s current players has reportedly told his inner circle that the Manchester United boss doesn’t believe in him despite his clear talent.
Rúben Amorim seems to be fighting a losing battle with respect to convincing Manchester United fans that his ideas are worth keeping faith in.
While the head coach has made it clear from the opening months of his tenure at Old Trafford that he will be sticking to his guns and his 3-4-2-1 system, many are starting to lose faith in the feasibility of his ideas in the Premier League.
The United boss has managed 31 Premier League games this campaign and won just eight of those, only against non-relegated sides, and is yet to record back-to-back wins in the competition.
There have also been many questions surrounding the instructions and deployment of United’s biggest stars like Bruno Fernandes, Amad, and Kobbie Mainoo.
Mainoo feels unappreciated by Amorim
The Mainoo conundrum has been the most bizarre of all. The 20-year-old is one of the most talented young stars in world football, but Amorim has so far failed to utilise the midfielder’s clear abilities on the ball.
“The Kobbie Mainoo situation is infuriating,” journalist Alex Crook commented on talkSPORT. “Because you go back to the 2024 FA Cup final, he scores in that game, he runs the midfield against Manchester City, United defy the odds, and they win the FA Cup, it keeps Erik ten Hag in a job.
“A few weeks later, he comes in and solves that No.6 issue that England had at the European Championships; he plays in the European Championship final.
“He’s been criminally underused by Ruben Amorim, and I speak to people close to Kobbie Mainoo, and they say to me, ‘He doesn’t fancy him, Kobbie believes the manager doesn’t have any faith in his ability.’
“And I think that’s a real dereliction of duty, a player who has come through the academy. I’m ranting here, but I heard a caller on Drive last night talking about the system.
“If Ryan Giggs was a Manchester United player now, he’d struggle to get in the team, because he doesn’t fit the system!”
Is Amorim blind to Mainoo’s best traits?
Many times this season, Amorim has clarified that he wants club captain Fernandes, who is naturally an attacking midfielder, to play a much deeper role as the 31-year-old is good at progressing the ball from defence to attack with his range of passing.
However, when Fernandes passes from United’s defensive third or the halfway line into the opposition’s third of the pitch, by definition, he won’t be on the other end to receive the ball and deliver it to the striker and attacking line.
Mainoo excels in tight spaces, and another one of his specialities, showcased in his performance against City (see the clip below), is carrying the ball forward with his feet and breaking through the lines.
Despite Amorim witnessing this ability time and time again, the head coach seems to be blind to the idea that Mainoo can carry out the ball progression in a much more effective way than Fernandes, as he would be able to arrive in the final third with those such as Bryan Mbeumo, Fernandes, Benjamin Šeško, and others all ready to receive the ball.
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