Rúben Amorim told Manchester United star has “worrying” trait amid calls for ‘stunning’ change vs Arsenal

Rúben Amorim has been told one of his Manchester United players has a “worrying” trait amid calls for the head coach to make a stunning change against Arsenal.

Manchester United return to Premier League action on Sunday afternoon as they host Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal at Old Trafford.

Rúben Amorim’s side were last in action midweek, playing out a 1-1 draw with Real Sociedad in San Sebastián. Joshua Zirkzee fired United into the lead, but a contentious penalty decision allowed the hosts to equalise.

United and Arsenal have already met twice this season. The Gunners claimed a 2-0 victory at the Emirates in December, but Amorim’s men responded in the FA Cup, winning on penalties after a 1-1 draw in January.

Now, with Arsenal visiting Old Trafford for the first time under Amorim, the Portuguese coach will be determined to build on his positive record against Arteta and maintain United’s momentum.

Højlund has a “worrying” trait

United head into the Arsenal fixture with two of Amorim’s front three having not scored since turn of the year, and even Zirkzee has only netted in three of his last 22 appearances.

While Alejandro Garnacho has failed to score of late, he has still been involved in a few goals, while Rasmus Højlund has not been involved in any goal since a brace against FC Plzen in mid-December.

Former Premier League striker and the competition’s all-time top scorer, Alan Shearer, has been speaking about Højlund of late and explained it’s worrying that Amorim’s first-choice striker has scored so few goals despite not missing too many chances.

“Rasmus Højlund won’t be enjoying it right now, it’s hard when you don’t score for such a long time,” Shearer told BetFair. “He’s not exactly missing a load of chances either, which is more the worrying thing.

“He has to keep going, getting into goal scoring positions, because once you stop doing that, you’re never going to score.”

However, Shearer also offered Højlund some advice, explaining that the Danish international must look to keep practicing and throwing himself in the box to get that one goal, as it may transform the rest of his season.

“As hard as it may be, and as mentally tough as it is, you cannot be afraid to miss chances. You have got to keep getting in there, keep practicing, because eventually one chance will fall to you and that might be the moment which would transform your season.”

Amorim told to make stunning Arsenal change

However, former United defender Paul Parker has called for Amorim to make a stunning change and swap Højlund for Chido Obi when United face Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.

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The 17-year-old striker has so far made three appearances for the Reds, all off the bench, and impressed during his 53 minutes against Fulham in the FA Cup last week.

“Chido Obi has to play. Right now, Højlund is being destroyed, and you have to question how the rest of the team feel playing with him. He’s really, really struggling,” Parker said.

“Ryan Giggs was 17 when I turned up to United, and he was playing. Obi is going to want as many games as possible. This is the time to grab things and make it happen. They can’t wait until he’s 20 to give him a chance.”

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