Rúben Amorim has addressed the chances of either Leny Yoro, Joshua Zirkee, or Diogo Dalot starting the Europa League final against Tottenham following their returns from injury.
Manchester United are preparing for a huge night in Bilbao on Wednesday, where they’ll face Tottenham in the Europa League final.
It’s been a miserable stretch in the Premier League for Rúben Amorim’s side, who are without a win in eight, but their European form has told a very different story.
After securing third place in the league stage, United overcame Real Sociedad 5-2 on aggregate in the round of 16, with Bruno Fernandes delivering a stunning hat-trick in the second leg.
The quarter-finals brought sheer chaos. A 2-2 draw in Lyon set the stage for a dramatic return leg at Old Trafford—United went 2-0 up, fell 4-2 behind, then turned the tie around in seven frantic minutes with goals from Fernandes, Kobbie Mainoo, and Harry Maguire.
In the semi-finals, United were ruthless, dispatching Athletic Club 3-0 in Spain and 4-1 at home. Now, only Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham stand between them and European glory.
Amorim addresses start chances of returning trio
Ahead of United’s flight to Bilbao on Wednesday afternoon, it was revealed that Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, and Diogo Dalot had all returned to training. Matthijs de Ligt and Lisandro Martínez were the only players not fit for the final.
Speaking on Wednesday evening ahead of the tie, Amorim was asked about the availability of the trio for the game considering that none of them, especially Zirkzee, would be available for the tie.
“Me neither [didn’t expect them back],” Amorim admitted. So, they recover quite well. They push.
“Of course, we have the… We respect the feeling of the player, but we push a little bit because they wanted to be part of the team, and that is a very, very good sign. And it’s very good for us.”
Amorim also confirmed that trio are limited in the number of minutes they can play, hinting that none of Yoro, Zirkzee, or Dalot will be able to play from the start.
“Of course, they are limited in the minutes for the game, but they can help us to win the game.”
Substitutions will be crucial in the Europa League final
The most significant impact that the availability of these three players will have on Amorim’s squad is not that the head coach has more options for his starting XI, it’s that he now has further options off the bench.
Read More: Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou BLASTS journalist for “clown” report ahead of Europa League final
In the last few months, United have had to rotate and field strange starting sides due to the sheer number of injuries within the squad. This has led to Amorim not being able to impact fixtures properly with his substitutions.
However, against Athletic Club in the second leg of the semi-final, his substitutions were perfect. Mason Mount, Luke Shaw, and Amad came on for the final 30 minutes and completely changed the game.
With Zirkzee, Yoro, and Dalot all available, Amorim has quality options both in the starting XI and on the bench. Regardless of who starts, the head coach will be able to completely turn the tie on its head if needed by introducing further star players to the pitch.
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