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Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has insisted there’s no chance of him dropping Bruno Fernandes after the skipper produced another sensational display in the win vs. Leicester City.
Rasmus Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho ended their respective goal droughts as the Red Devils cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Leicester on Sunday evening.
United were the dominant side for large spells of the match and fully deserved the victory, which was only tainted by a serious-looking injury to January signing Ayden Heaven.
Heaven’s full Premier League debut came to an unfortunate end shortly after the break, after he got hurt trying to stop Patson Daka at the far post. Heaven had to be stretchered off.
Hojlund broke the deadlock in the 28th minute, with Garnacho following suit in the second half after his initial strike was ruled out by VAR. Fernandes provided the assists for both goals.
Fernandes then fired home in stoppage time, to pile further misery on Ruud van Nistelrooy and the Foxes.
After the match, Ruben Amorim spoke to reporters in the press conference and gave his verdict on the result and the display at the King Power Stadium.
“I think the performances are improving and when you have the performance and then some results, because it wasn’t all the results, you feel better and you start seeing different things.”
“I’m starting to see different things in the team, especially today, you can feel a lack of energy in some plays. But you feel that the team can find a way to win games even when they’re a little bit more tired, so it’s a good sign.”
Asked for a fitness update on Heaven, Amorim answered, “No. We’ll see next week. It’s hard to understand because even when he’s on the ground he cannot speak. He doesn’t know how to understand what he’s feeling because he’s so young.”
On how big it is for Hojlund that he has finally broken his goal drought, Amorim replied, “It’s really important for him. He’s doing the right things. He’s helping the team, he’s fighting for every ball and today he scored a very good goal, a very important goal, especially in that moment of the game. I think he deserved that goal more than anybody.”
Amorim also said about Garnacho, “He was really happy but the most important thing is how he’s improving his game. He’s playing both sides – not just on the left.”
“He’s sprinting back. These small things he’s doing quite well and then when you do the small things in that manner the good things will start to show and I also think he deserved a goal today.”
On the international break and possibly having time with some of his players, Amorim said, “For a coach, it’s difficult to have time off. We are going to divide the group. Some of the players – Mason Mount, Toby Collyer – they have to work on their fitness.”
“We have to recover players to help – Harry Maguire, Kobbie Mainoo – all these players, we’re going to try to bring those players for the final push for two competitions.”
“Some of the players are going to rest, more days than usual. So we’re going to give different things for different players and try to be ready for the final two months.” He continued, “We have others like Luke Shaw who are going to be ready soon. Everything is prepared and everybody has their ideas for this break.”
Amorim insisted that he’s players are not only improving their physical levels but are also slowly understanding the demands of his football, including how to press, closing down the spaces, creating chances and scoring goals.
Pressed a bit more on the source of this improvement, he attributed it to time and increased confidence from a couple of positive results.
He added, “The small things can change the way people see our team.”
On the United fans singing his name, Amorim told reporters, “It’s strange. They’ve given me a lot of responsibility but I don’t care about that because I know we’re so far away from what they expect and what they deserve. So, I know that I’m not going to feel a lot better. I just want to win to improve our performance and we’re far from what we need to show to our fans.”
Harry Amass finally made his senior United debut in the victory over Leicester. It has been a long time coming and when asked what Amass had done differently to be given the opportunity, Amorim noted, “Sometimes you can see all the situations in the game and you have these opportunities.”
“And you have your academy for this moment. You have some moments when some players have injuries and they have this opportunity. Harry Amass and all these young kids have to understand that they’re so lucky to be playing for Manchester United and that is so important for him, so it’s the best [birthday] gift that he can expect.”
On whether he could rest Fernandes in an effort to make sure he’s not overworked, Amorim emphasised, “I don’t feel that in Bruno, he’s a special guy in that aspect. He’s always ready. He can recover quite well. I don’t know the future.”
I’m just reading what the performance department tell me, the numbers and then what I see in the game. So I always see a Bruno that is dangerous and a Bruno that can recover in every situation, so he’s going to stay there.”
Amorim revealed that the thing that has surprised him the most with Fernandes is his work ethic on a daily basis. He branded the United skipper a “good professional” who wants to win at all costs.
Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images
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