Ruben Amorim told he risks losing Manchester United duo “mentally” after controversial decision

Ruben Amorim has been told that he risks losing two Manchester United players “mentally” for the rest of the season after a controversial decision.

Manchester United have struggled for goals this season, scoring just 28 in 24 Premier League games.

Their strikers are out of form, with Rasmus Højlund last finding the net in early December against Viktoria Plzen.

Since then, the Danish forward has gone 13 games without scoring, while Joshua Zirkzee is also goalless in his last 11 appearances.

In their recent 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace, Ruben Amorim opted to leave both strikers on the bench, instead deploying Kobbie Mainoo as a false nine.

The experiment did not work and both United strikers were introduced to the game in the second half, where they made minimal impact.

Sutton criticises Amorim striker decision

Amorim’s decision to play without a recognised number nine has been criticised by former Premier League striker Chris Sutton.

The ex-Blackburn talisman suggested that Amorim risks seeing the attacking duo thinking “about not applying themselves” for the rest of the season due to his decision.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Monday Night Club, he said: “If you are Joshua Zirkzee or Rasmus Hojlund and you’re seeing Kobbie Mainoo – who is a really excellent footballer but isn’t a centre-forward or false nine – being picked, you are thinking: ‘How on earth is he playing in front of me?’

“That is a real problem. Amorim is basically telling the pair of them that he doesn’t rate them in any way, shape or form.

“He could lose these two players, mentally, for the rest of the season now and they might think about not applying themselves.”

Zirkzee and Højlund can have no complaints about Amorim snub

This is an argument that holds legs if either striker had proven that they deserve to play – but they haven’t and can have no complaints about the decision.

Højlund has started 19 games this season while Zirkzee has started 13 times. They have both had chances to prove that they deserve to start but are almost always underwhelming.

If one of the pair were to have complaints, the Dutchman would perhaps have a better case as he has produced several decent performances in recent weeks.

Read More: Manchester United duo are causing Rúben Amorim a £108 million transfer headache

However, the only reaction they should have from the Palace game is to prove themselves to Amorim.

Their first chance came in that game, where both players were given more than 20 minutes to make an impact and they failed to impress.

United are considering making a move for a striker in the summer and the attacking pair have until then to prove to Amorim that they deserve to be part of his project.

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