Manchester United have their most important games of the season coming up in the Europa League against Real Sociedad this week.
Manchester United were knocked out of the FA Cup on Sunday night in agonising fashion after a penalty shootout defeat to Fulham in the fifth-round.
Ruben Amorim’s men currently sit 14th in the Premier League table and are too far away to even dream of finishing in European qualification spots.
That leaves the Europa League as the club’s only possible chance of success this season in terms of silverware, and of course the chance to qualify for the Champions League.
An extremely difficult test comes against Real Sociedad in the round-of-16 over the next two weeks, with the away leg in Spain being held this Thursday.
Amorim has to make some changes to his team, who simply need to win these next two games otherwise they will be playing for nothing for the rest of the season.
Three United players must be dropped vs Sociedad
There are several players who should be dropped for this game and the most obvious one is Rasmus Højlund.
Despite his solid goalscoring form in Europe, the Danish striker has to start this game from the bench for two main reasons.
Højlund needs to come out of the spotlight amid his long goalless run, but United also need a striker option off the bench since Chido Obi is not available for the game.
Instead, Joshua Zirkzee will need to move back upfront despite having done well in the slightly deeper position recently.
That also means that United will need someone stretching the pitch if Zirkzee is upfront and Alejandro Garnacho needs to be reinstated to the team, with Christian Eriksen dropping back to the bench.
The Argentine winger is currently the only available option to Amorim who has pace to run in behind the opposition defence.
Finally, should Harry Maguire be fit for the game, Diogo Dalot needs to come out of the team as Patrick Dorgu returns to action. Despite registering an assist against Fulham, Dalot has been making simple errors in recent weeks and needs some time to recharge after so long in the starting XI.
Noussair Mazraoui seems like the better option to play on the right flank currently, even though neither player truly suits the wingback role in Amorim’s system.
Why Amorim needs to make Fernandes change
Bruno Fernandes is currently United’s only reliable attacking threat. Supporters have little confidence in any other player to provide the magic moment that the team need.
The captain has been playing deeper in recent months because it allows him to get on the ball more to help orchestrate attacks for other players.
While Fernandes can do that job, right now, in the important games, he needs to be closer to goal so that United have a better chance of finishing chances.
No other United player could have finished the chance Fernandes scored on Sunday night, and Amorim needs the Portuguese midfielder in those positions inside the box more often and Casemiro can partner Manuel Ugarte in the deeper role.
Read More: Rúben Amorim must start two Manchester United stars vs Real Sociedad after “masterclass” vs Fulham
While a front three of Zirkzee, Garnacho and Fernandes is far from perfect, it certainly seems like it would provide United’s best chance of winning the game against Sociedad this week.
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