It was timed perfectly from Ruben Amorim’s perspective. Luke Shaw made his first appearance of the season under the new head coach.
Luke Shaw’s last Premier League appearance came way back in February. Barring a brief showing at Euro 2024, the talented defender has not played a game since, even a friendly.
Ruben Amorim must be a lucky head coach, as Luke Shaw was magically available for his first game in charge.
Amorim decided to tread carefully, selecting Shaw on the bench for his first game – but he was confident enough to throw him on for his season debut in the second half.
How Luke Shaw fared
Luke Shaw came on in the 56th minute along with Manuel Ugarte as part of a double substitution for Jonny Evans and Casemiro.
Shaw replaced Evans, taking his place at centre-back. We had suggested the centre-back role could be one where Shaw sees some action in Ruben Amorim’s new system.
It was an ideal way for Shaw to ease back into action, and it’s worth noting United did not concede any goals during the time he was on the pitch.
Shaw saw plenty of possession, completing an impressive 52/59 passes, and 63 touches total. He made one tackle, one interception, and looked sharp.
With Lisandro Martinez, Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof out injured, Shaw’s revival into the centre-back role was well timed.
Luke Shaw praised
Centre-back is a position Luke Shaw played under Erik ten Hag, but he also did so under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer when the Norwegian shifted to a three-man defence.
Speaking to MUTV, former Manchester United academy talent Fraizer Campbell discussed Shaw’s ability to fulfil the centre-back role.
Campbell said: “I think it suits him down to a tee. You know, he’s calm on the ball. He never looks panicked.
“And he can, he can start attacks, so that left side of the three [works] even if he could even play the wing back at some stages.
“The left side of the three for him is a perfect role. We’ve just got to make sure we keep him fit, keep him available.
“And obviously, when Martinez gets back, hopefully we can do a bit of rotation, you know, hopefully he’ll stay fit for longer, keep that competition for places, because I think both of them players could do a really good job in that spot.”
It is unknown how long Lisandro Martinez will be out of action for. He left international duty early without playing a game, with a back injury cited.
There is a chance both players could be available this week for the Thursday night match-up against Bodo/Glimt.
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