“They are ready…” – Ruben Amorim defends two surprise Manchester United selections vs Bodo/Glimt

Ruben Amorim has defended two surprise Manchester United selections he has made in the Europa League against Bodo/Glimt.

Rúben Amorim leads Manchester United for the second time, following a 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town in his managerial debut on the weekend.

The Europa League clash with Bodo/Glimt will mark Amorim’s first game in the Old Trafford dugout since his appointment earlier this month.

United currently sit 15th in the Europa League standings, three points adrift of the top eight spots needed for automatic progression to the next round.

With just one win and three draws so far, United must improve in their remaining four group-stage fixtures to climb the table and avoid the play-off round before next year’s knockout stages.

Ahead of the game, Amorim’s team selection has showed his desire to rotate properly and give members of his squad the chance to impress.

Two of the most notable and surprising changes were Antony and Tyrell Malacia coming in for Amad Diallo and Diogo Dalot as the wingbacks.

Antony’s first start since the Carabao Cup clash against Barnsley was somewhat of a surprise considering Amad’s brilliant outing against Ipswich.

Meanwhile, many were not anticipating that Malacia would be ready to start for the first-team this soon, with reports having claimed that United would be extra careful in his reintegration.

However, despite there being external question marks over the two players, Amorim has defended them both before the game and believes they are ‘ready to cope’ with the clash.

“We have to change players to be fresh, not to prepare the other games, but to be competitive today we need to have fresh players,” he told TNT Sports.

“We are in the beginning of something, so every player counts, and we have to show that.

“And like you said, you talk about Antony, Brazilian international, and then you talk about Malacia, a Dutch international.

“So, they are international players, they are Manchester United players, so they are ready to cope with the demands of the game.”

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