Fulham boss Marco Silva highlighted a mistake made by Ruben Amorim during Manchester United’s defeat against Fulham in the FA Cup fifth-round.
Manchester United started the FA Cup clash with intent but struggled to create meaningful chances in the final third, their attack lacking pace and sharpness.
As the first half drew to a close, Ruben Amorim’s side conceded a frustrating goal—once again from a corner—leaving them with a difficult task in the second half.
The response was sluggish, and the Old Trafford crowd grew increasingly frustrated by the team’s lack of urgency.
However, as he has done so often this season, Bruno Fernandes stepped up when United needed him most. He expertly connected with Diogo Dalot’s low cross to fire home the crucial equaliser.
With extra time failing to produce a winner, the match was decided by penalties. Fulham emerged victorious after Victor Lindelöf and Joshua Zirkzee had their spot-kicks saved.
Silva highlights Amorim mistake in United vs Fulham
United’s issues right now are aplenty but one of the most concerning aspects of Amorim’s team is the lack of pace in the frontline.
That is made even more prominent when Alejandro Garnacho is not starting. The Argentine was on the bench in this encounter.
Amorim explained before the game that it was a “risk” to start the winger after he received a knock in the last game, and he also said that rotation would be important.
But the big problem is that United have no pace to replace Garnacho and so looked extremely laboured in their attack, especially when looking to break on Fulham.
Garnacho came on during the second half and injected that speed and intensity into the game. Even though he is on a very poor goal drought, the 20-year-old still manages to create more danger than his teammates.
Marco Silva explained after the game that Garnacho was the “only problem” United created for his side all game, suggesting that Amorim deciding to keep him on the bench for the game was a mistake.
“To come here and to take the game to their defensive half, we know always that we take risks in that situation, because since Garnacho came in, they had the pace of him to create problems, and that was the only problem they created, from counter-attack situations,” Silva told reporters.
It is quite damning that a club like United have such major problems when deciding not to risk the fitness of a 20-year-old player – but that is where they are.
United are unable to control games against the likes of Fulham and need some sort of outlet to help on the transition. That is almost non-existent without Garnacho right now.
Read More: Bruno Fernandes admits that Rúben Amorim’s message to Manchester United’s board backfired vs Fulham
The only potential solution for this problem is on loan at Aston Villa, with Marcus Rashford being the only other player on United’s books with the ability to have a similar impact.
Whether in a 3-4-3 or a 4-2-3-1, it doesn’t really matter too much. United’s squad right now is not only a poor one, but one with little confidence.
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