Manchester United fans are urging Erik ten Hag to start Amad Diallo in the Red Devils’ forthcoming FA Cup clash against Nottingham Forest at City Ground.
Erik ten Hag’s men suffered their first defeat of 2024 on Saturday after Fulham secured a 2-1 Premier League victory at Old Trafford.
Manchester United appeared lethargic against Fulham and were outclassed by Marco Silva’s men, who secured the win thanks to an injury-time winner from Alex Iwobi.
The Red Devils had won their last four Premier League matches before the Fulham defeat, with Erik ten Hag suffering a major setback in United’s top-four challenge.
Ten Hag was without in-form striker Rasmus Hojlund for the Fulham clash and the Dutchman made the big call to start teenager Omari Forson out on the wing.
Omari Forson started ahead of Amad Diallo and Antony, but the United player failed to blow fans away with his first-half performance against Fulham.
READ MORE: Furious Man Utd fans react to two players after Fulham defeat, one was ‘worst player’ on the pitch
Diallo impresses vs Fulham
Amad Diallo came off the bench in the second half and replaced Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo in the 80th minute at Old Trafford.
The 21-year-old United winger has struggled to secure regular first-team minutes this season, despite fans wanting Erik ten Hag to offer him a chance on the pitch.
Prior to the Fulham match, Diallo’s last appearance for United came in the 2-1 Premier League defeat to Nottingham Forest at City Ground before the end of 2023.
The Ivory Coast international impressed against Nottingham Forest last December and once again made his presence felt with his brief cameo against Fulham.
Ten Hag admitted that Diallo looked “very sharp” in the 2-1 defeat on the weekend and the United boss hinted that the player is part of his future plans.
Speaking to the BBC in his post-match interview (via Manchester United’s official website), he said: “Amad looks very sharp.
“I think it was a good sub [performance] from him. I think that’s good for the future.
“We need them because we have our problems in the frontline.
“So, it’s about them, to show they can contribute to this team, that they can have an end product but also to show liability.”
Man Utd fans all agree on Diallo to start
United punched their ticket to the fifth round of the FA Cup after defeating Wigan 2-0 in the third round and beating Newport County 4-2 in the fourth round.
The Red Devils travel to City Ground on Wednesday for their FA Cup clash with Forest, with kick-off slated for 7:45pm UK time.
The FA Cup is Ten Hag’s last real chance to secure major silverware for United this season, having fallen short of the trophy in the previous campaign.
United fans on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, are convinced that Ten Hag must start Diallo for the fifth-round FA Cup tie against Forest.
One fan posted: “For me, Ten Hag has to start Amad on Wednesday night. Looked sharp when he came on and is the best option there right now, IMO.”
Another wrote: “Erik ten Hag, I am on my knees, Amad Diallo is so much [of a] talent [and] we’d hate to see rot on the bench; please, we would really appreciate [seeing] him start against Nottingham Forest.”
“Amad should start against Forest in the FA Cup. It’s about time he gets a run of [matches],” a third added.
Somebody else commented: “Amad will start vs Forest on [Wednesday], do well, and then start vs City (if Hojlund isn’t fit).”
“Amad came on [and] brought energy [against Fulham]. He needs to start against Forest [as he is] the only one who wanted to fight out there,” another tweeted.
While a sixth said: “I agree he [Diallo] starts, but I’d start him from the left, [Alejandro] Garnacho is so much more effective from the right. Unless you’re giving him a rest, then play Forsan [at] LW [and] Amad [at] RW.”
And a seventh stated: “Amad Diallo must START from now on for Manchester United. Was so good against Fulham.”
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