Ruben Amorim has just received a huge boost ahead of Manchester Derby next weekend

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After two consecutive losses, Ruben Amorim and Manchester United have been faced with the gigantic task at hand that is turning the club around.

The Arsenal loss was down to the opponents being much further in their process than Man Utd but the Nottingham Forest loss was difficult to explain away casually.

The fixture list isn’t getting any easier and after two wins in five games, the next league game is away at Manchester City, a ground managers haven’t had much joy at.

City are going through a rough patch themselves but the form book goes out of the window in a derby match so Ruben Amorim can use all the help he can get.

Fortunately, he has just received a massive one after City’s latest clash against Crystal Palace in the Premier League.

Ruben Amorim’s boost for Manchester Derby

Amorim has made many changes to his starting XI for every game and explained away every change is a counter to a game-specific situation.

It is clear that Amorim believes in a “horses for courses” method of team selection instead of being stubborn tactically and being predictable.

Not all gambles have paid off but he’s just been given a reason to be more aggressive vs Manchester City in their next league game.

The scorer in Manchester City’s game vs Palace, Rico Lewis, was sent off after two yellow cards which means he’ll miss the derby next weekend.

Lewis has played 80% of all available minutes across all competitions this season for Pep Guardiola’s team as one of the first names on the teamsheet.

Lewis’ absence means that City will start the derby with just three fit senior defenders, with the likes of John Stones, Manuel Akanji, and Nathan Ake suffering from issues too.

Akanji is a possibility for that game but it would be a case of one in, one out with Lewis’ suspension instead of bolstering the total number of options at Guardiola’s disposal.

Guardiola has been ruing the injury worries at Etihad this season and that’s a complaint that will be all too familiar to Man Utd fans, especially after the 2023/24 season.

Rico Lewis’ suspension changes things for Man Utd

Lewis has generally started as the right-back this season but such is his versatility that he has played a total of five positions this season alone.

Nonetheless, assuming right-back as his preferred starting position, that is the ideal absence for United because their left-wing is exactly where the struggle has been.

Diogo Dalot struggled vs Forest and hasn’t set the world alight there and Tyrell Malacia is nowhere near fit enough to be dependable right now.

Furthermore, both Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho have failed to consistently impress as left-sided attacking midfielders.

Lewis’ absence softens that wing for United not just in an attacking sense, but from a defensive POV as well because he is a master at finding spaces between the lines.

His attacking runs to drag markers away from the play and create space for his teammates are elite and against a team that is still figuring things out in a new system, that would have created havoc.

Fortunately for United, that threat has been taken care of before a ball has even been kicked.