Match Coverage
Rúben Amorim hit with immediate blow as “brilliant” Manchester United star unavailable vs Leicester City
Rúben Amorim has been hit with an immediate blow as a “brilliant” Manchester United player is unavailable to face Leicester City on Sunday afternoon.
Manchester United booked their place in the Europa League quarter-finals with a 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad, powered by a Bruno Fernandes hat-trick and a late goal from Diogo Dalot.
Sociedad struck first at Old Trafford, with Mikel Oyarzabal converting an early penalty, but United responded swiftly as Fernandes equalised from the spot after Rasmus Højlund was fouled.
Fernandes put United ahead early in the second half with another penalty following a foul on Patrick Dorgu. Sociedad’s hopes faded further when Jon Aramburu was sent off for a reckless challenge on Dorgu.
United took full control, with Fernandes completing his hat-trick before Dalot added a fourth in stoppage time. Rúben Amorim’s side now face Olympique Lyonnais in the quarter-finals.
United star praised for “brilliant” performance
While Fernandes has garnered much praise for yet another clutch performance at Old Trafford, Dorgu is another player who has been collecting plaudits for a great performance at left wing-back.
Former United midfielder Wes Brown is one of those who singled out the Danish international, stating on MUTV that Dorgu was “brilliant” against Sociedad.
“Listen, I think he started it off for us by making the runs”, Brown explained. “The lads know now from training with him that he’s quick and if they play a ball into that space, he’s going to get there and he’s gonna cause danger.
“He’s also got the skill to knock it by his man. Every opportunity he got he was running, he turned the other team and got us forward and then we started creating chances.
“Dorgu, today he was brilliant. It’s his speed, he’s got good close control and his teammates are starting to understand what he’s good at, and he’s good at running.”
Dorgu a huge miss vs Leicester City
It has become clear in recent games that United look like a much more balanced team when Dorgu is on the field.
With the 20-year-old on the left, this allows Dalot to play on the right, which gives the team a more even spread. Combined with Garnacho in the right attacking spot, United then have two attacking options on either side of the striker, which allows for more versatile forward play.
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However, Dorgu will be unavailable when United play Leicester City this weekend because he is serving the final match of a three-game ban.
After being sent off in the first half against Ipswich Town a few weeks ago, Dorgu was handed a three-game ban, but as the red card happened in a domestic fixture, his ban does not apply to European ties, meaning he has been able to play against Real Sociedad.
The fact he is unavailable for Amorim on the weekend is a big blow, as it will halt some of the momentum and cohesion United showed on Thursday night, which the head coach will no doubt want to see continue.
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