Ruben Amorim broke his silence over a “timeline” for one Manchester United star ahead of the Red Devils’ FA Cup tie against Leicester City at Old Trafford.
Manchester United resume their FA Cup campaign — and title defence — on Friday and Ruben Amorim will be hopeful of his bouncing back against the Foxes.
Amorim’s men suffered a 2-0 defeat to Crystal Palace in the Premier League at Old Trafford last weekend.
United kicked off their FA Cup title defence last month at the Emirates and the Red Devils secured a penalty shootout win against Arsenal in the third-round tie.
Leicester City’s arrival at Old Trafford on Friday evening will also mark the return of Ruud van Nistelrooy to the Theatre of Dreams this season.
Ruud van Nistelrooy was assistant manager under Erik ten Hag before his fellow Dutch compatriot was sacked by the Premier League club last October.
The Leicester City boss took over as interim United manager after Erik ten Hag was axed and led the Red Devils for four matches before his Old Trafford exit.
Amorim speaks out on Man Utd star
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will be without first-choice left-back Luke Shaw for the Leicester City match at Old Trafford on Friday.
Luke Shaw’s season — and career for that matter — has been plagued by injuries and the United left-back has struggled with fitness for the Red Devils.
The 29-year-old United defender has only managed three appearances in the 2024-25 campaign and fans have been left deeply frustrated with his injury-hit season.
Shaw suffered a minor injury setback recently and has been ruled out for the forthcoming FA Cup tie, with the player expected to return to training next week.
Amorim insisted that he does not “want any pressure” to be placed on the United medical team or Shaw over a timeline for his return.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference, he said: “Yeah, it’s hard. It’s hard to give you a time because he has a small issue different from the injury. Then he has to stop.
“Then we have to return a little bit to work the fitness to be aware of the last injury. So, it’s a complicated moment to try to tell you a timeline.
“I don’t want any pressure on the medical department, or on Luke. We just need the players fit to help the team.”
Man Utd manager Amorim talks doubt
Amorim has seen the highs and lows at Old Trafford since his arrival from Sporting CP last November, but the United boss has said doubt always remains on his mind.
“Even when you are winning, you are always doubting yourself,” he admitted, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“That is a good thing. I’m always doubting myself about everything, even when I was winning all the games in Portugal. So, it’s the same situation.
“The part is to lose, to fail. You can say it: to fail. To fail my players, not helping them. Seeing them suffer every time, especially at home.
“So, it’s clear to me what we need to do, what type of profiles we need, even if it’s a left foot or a right foot in this position, what the characteristics [are].
“That is so clear for me that I will do the same until the last day. I will continue to take this job in the same way.”
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