Ruben Amorim must be feeling vindicated with Manchester United’s winning streak, but another vindication of his unpopular call arrived vs Brighton, and it’s one he’d rather have been wrong about.
The three-game streak has been a story of one vindication after another. Can Man Utd beat a team with 11 men at home? Sunderland ticked it.
Can they beat Liverpool away in the first fixture after the international break? The 2-1 win ticked it. Can they leave that high to beat their bogey team at home? 4-2 vs Brighton ticked it.
In the process, arguably the most unpopular Ruben Amorim decision also got vindicated, and it’s one he won’t be happy about.
Ruben Amorim saw Kobbie Mainoo as square peg in round hole
The exclusion of Kobbie Mainoo from the regular first XI has been one of the most puzzling developments this season at Old Trafford.
From the golden boy of Man Utd to having one foot out of the exit door, it’s a decision that made Amorim deeply unpopular, arguably more than the poor results.
Mainoo isn’t deemed nifty and threatening enough to play as the attacking midfielder, and doesn’t have the athleticism and defensive nous to play as the deeper midfielder.
Against Brighton, with the team leading 3-0, Amorim rolled the dice on what the fans have been asking for since the start of the season.
Mainoo came on in place of Casemiro, who was holding it all together, as Amorim finally relented on the youngster being the direct replacement for Bruno Fernandes.
A Fernandes-Mainoo pivot was formed, and within the next 10 minutes, Amorim was vindicated.
Brighton started slicing through that midfield like a hot knife through butter, finding plenty of joy with their forays down the middle.
It became so bad that Amorim had to bring on Manuel Ugarte soon after as an emergency measure to see out the game with some solidity.
Mainoo was caught on the ball multiple times, and his sense of timing about when to jump for the press and when to hold position was completely off.
The midfield was overrun with ease as a result, and the game settled immediately after Ugarte came on.
Amorim was vindicated in his verdict that Mainoo can only play with a defensive-minded midfielder, making him Fernandes’ replacement, instead of his partner.
The way forward for Mainoo
This is the worst season for Mainoo to struggle because not only will he get fewer chances to impress since United don’t play many games, but he’s also at risk of missing out on a World Cup berth next summer.
The game against Brighton showed that a pivot with Fernandes won’t work against teams happy to throw players forward against United.
Considering Fernandes is the first name on the teamsheet, that spells trouble for the Carrington graduate.
The only way forward is for Amorim to try this pivot against teams who sit back in a low block and counter with just a few players.
Coincidentally, the Nottingham Forest game could have been perfect for Mainoo, but they pose such a set-piece threat that Casemiro’s aerial dominance will be preferred there too.
Ultimately, his inclusion in the team alongside Fernandes only makes sense in a small subset of games, and his inclusion over Fernandes doesn’t make sense at all.
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