Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has been told by an Old Trafford legend that ‘his head is fried and confused’ after a demanding first three months in the job.
Amorim was installed as Red Devils boss in November after Erik ten Hag was dismissed, as he swapped a going for a title defence with Sporting CP for a rebuilding job at Manchester United.
While Amorim has been able to progress in the Europa League and FA Cup, the club remains rooted in midtable, with the team suffering a series of home defeats as the squad tries to get to grips with the manager’s 3-4-3 system.
Paul Scholes questions Amorim selection decision
It is clear that plenty of work still needs to be done with the squad, with minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe making a series of signings during the summer in what was the billionaire’s first window leading the club’s football operations.
January saw Antony and Marcus Rashford head out on loan, while Patrick Dorgu, predominantly a left-wing back, was the club’s only senior arrival when he joined from Lecce in a £30million move.
The Danish international made his debut in the FA Cup win over Leicester City, but was played on the right-hand side, despite his attributes making him a perfect fit for a left wing-back role in Amorim’s system.
This got on the radar of Manchester United legend Paul Scholes, who fears the new manager – who FourFourTwo ranked as one of the best managers in the world last year – is overcomplicating things after a testing start to life in the Old Trafford dugout.
“Look, I’m not at the point where I’m thinking it’s the wrong decision [to appoint Amorim] because he’s came into a mess and still feels like a mess, but the rest,” Scholes said on Sky Bet’s The Overlap.
“The league form, the way they’re playing now and you talk about cup competitions. As I said before, a big concern for me is that we’ve been crying out for a left wing-back. They buy one [Dorgu] and it tells me his [Amorim] head is a little bit fried and confused at the minute because he plays him at right wing-back and keeps Dalot on the left. What’s going on here?”
“There are a few things that are concerning. There’s a lot of stuff he needs to do, we all know that, especially in transfer windows, but I don’t see a core of players. I think a new goalkeeper is needed, possibly two centre-backs, two central midfield players, and two centre-forwards.”
In FourFourTwo’s view, Scholes is correct to ask these questions, but is also savvy enough to know that Amorim needs time and the backing of the club in the transfer window to turn the Manchester United tanker around. The club’s current squad is an unbalanced mess and if the board believe they have the right man at the helm, Amorim should not pay for the sins of the past.
