Ruben Amorim made a point about Lisandro Martinez following Manchester United’s latest injury issue during defeat against Brentford.
A heavily rotated United side weathered early Brentford pressure and opened the scoring with a well-executed counter-attack.
However, defensive mistakes saw the hosts respond with two goals before the break, followed by two more in the second half to establish a dominant 4-1 lead.
Late efforts from Alejandro Garnacho and Amad gave United a glimmer of hope, but it wasn’t enough to change the outcome.
Ruben Amorim and his team will be disappointed with the defeat, though it’s evident that their focus remains firmly on the Europa League for the remainder of the season.
Amorim makes Martinez point when discussing De Ligt injury
One of the worst parts about the defeat on Sunday was the fact that Matthijs de Ligt had to be substituted with an injury in the first-half.
The Dutchman, who had only returned to the pitch this week, fell to the floor in agony just before Brentford scored their second goal of the game.
Amorim was not too concerned about the fact that United’s opposition did not kick the ball out of play ijn that instance, but he instead is worried about De Ligt’s injury being long-term.
In fact, the United boss made a point about Lisandro Martinez, who is currently out of action for a long period with an ACL injury. He does not care if De Ligt misses the next game against Athletic Club, but hopes that he will not have a similar injury timeline to the Argentine.
“I will not comment [on Brentford playing after De Ligt went down injured],” Amorim told reporters when asked about the incident in his post-match press conference.
The important thing is to have Mata… I’m not thinking about Thursday, it’s not a big issue [if he misses that game].
“The only thing I ask – it’s not to have him available for this game – I just don’t want a big issue because we had a problem with Licha, and with Mata… I don’t know, I have no idea [on the severity of his injury]. He could be training in three days, I don’t know.”
Amorim has options in United defence
A long-term issue for De Ligt would certainly complicate things in terms of the defensive depth at Old Trafford but, thankfully, his issue doesn’t seem that serious.
The defender was spotted leaving the Gtech Community Stadium without crutches or aid, which is a positive sign for the defender.
Fortunately, United also have some other strong defensive options, with Harry Maguire and Leny Yoro currently in form for the Reds.
Amad’s own return from injury could also allow Noussair Mazraoui to return to the back three against Athletic Club – the position where he has looked at his best under Amorim.
Meanwhile, Tyler Fredricson has impressed in both of his first-team cameos. Luke Shaw and Victor Lindelof are another fit options in the backline.
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