Ruben Amorim and Manchester United remain firmly in the eye of the storm after another loss in the Premier League consigned them to 15th place in the table.
Man Utd lost to Spurs for the third time this season, the second time under Ruben Amorim, and like the previous fixture in the League Cup, it was a game of chances missed.
United were arguably good value for the draw at least, if not a win, despite fielding a vastly undermanned side courtesy of a full-blown injury crisis.
That injury crisis caused Amorim to prep a bench almost entirely full of youngsters but in a but of an anti-climax, only Chido Obi saw the field and that too for just three minutes.
Andy Mitten explains Ruben Amorim’s youth player snub
Understandably after the game, Man Utd fans were furious with Amorim for not throwing the dice and replacing clearly struggling senior players with exciting youngsters.
According to many, Amorim betrayed his reputation of bringing through young players that he had at Sporting even though the Man Utd manager explained his rationale after the game.
Amorim explained that the level jump from youth to senior football is too high and the players need to be protected.
Andy Mitten was on Sky Sports after those comments and gave a more direct appraisal of the situation that aligns with Amorim’s general thoughts.
Mitten said: “I speak to a lot of people in the club and no, [they’re not ready for first-team football]. I know fans just say ‘Throw them in, it can’t be worse’ but actually, it can be worse.
“These players need protecting, introducing in the right environment. Maybe needs must due to injuries but I speak to people in the club and nobody says to me, ‘Yeah, this guy is ready to play first-team football at the moment,’ because they’re just not ready.
“There will be a lot of support for the young players from Man Utd fans, it’s the legacy but it’s a really difficult environment for the young players to be introduced into the team.”
Ruben Amorim is striking a fine balance
Amorim is in a thankless situation where the excitement of the unknown in youth players is the only thing keeping fans glued to watching United games when the senior team isn’t providing much.
That is why there is a manic clamour to see the young players introduced into the setup, especially because the youth team has been doing so well in stark contrast to the senior setup.
The Man Utd manager has had to strike a fine balance between creating an environment where the youngsters can be protected from the intense scrutiny of the first team while still being able to contribute if needed.
If Mitten’s claim is true, and it generally is, then that job becomes even more difficult for Amorim because his snubbing of the youth players was arguably the first time the fanbase turned against him in unison.
A strong self-belief has never been more important for Amorim.
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