Ruben Amorim could make unexpected Man United XI decision due to surprise resurgence

Ruben Amorim could make an unexpected decision for his Manchester United lineup due to a surprise resurgence from one player.

Manchester United confirmed that Ruben Amorim will be joining the club as the new head coach following Erik ten Hag’s sacking last week.

The Portuguese boss will start his role on 11 November when the international break comes and will be keen to start well at Old Trafford.

Ruud van Nistelrooy is currently in interim charge at the club while they wait for Amorim. He led the team in the Carabao Cup win against Leicester City and the 1-1 draw to Chelsea on the weekend.

One thing Amorim will need to learn quickly is what his strongest XI is as that was a problem that stung Ten Hag and ultimately ended in his dismissal.

Some players pick themselves, with Kobbie Mainoo an undisputed starter in the midfield when he is back fully fit. However, his partner is less obvious.

Manuel Ugarte was signed in the summer to play alongside the 19-year-old but we have also seen him paired with Casemiro and Christian Eriksen.

Ugarte’s chances of succeeding at the club seemed to be lifted when Amorim was confirmed as the new boss as he previously thrived under him at Sporting Lisbon.

However, if you cast your mind back to when Ten Hag joined the club in the summer of 2022, many believed that he would help revive Donny van de Beek’s career at the club. He started just three games under the Dutch manager before leaving the club last summer.

Ugarte is certainly not in the same position Van de Beek was in. The Uruguayan midfielder has only been at the club a matter of months–but the point is that his place will not immediately be secure under Amorim.

That is particularly due to the sudden resurgence of Casemiro in the midfield, who has quietly been one of United’s better performers so far this season.

After scoring twice against The Foxes in midweek, the Brazilian midfielder played an unbelievable pass to unlock the Chelsea defence on the weekend, which led to the penalty.

Casemiro did have a truly awful 45 minutes of football against Liverpool a couple of months ago but barring that game he has been much improved from last season.

While many may assume that Amorim will put immediate trust in Ugarte to play alongside Mainoo, he has yet to show that he can thrive in the Premier League environment and Casemiro’s form could influence the new head coach to try and get the best out of the midfield Ten Hag preferred last season.

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