Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim with Marcus Rashford during a training session at Carrington Training Centre, Manchester, November 27, 2024
Ruben Amorim (left) says he will try to help Rashford (right) but he must first help himself
Ruben Amorim has challenged Marcus Rashford to rediscover the player of two seasons ago if he wants to play a major role in regenerating the club’s fortunes.
The out-of-form United striker gave Amorim’s reign the perfect start, finishing a sweeping move against Ipswich Town after just 81 seconds at Portman Road on Sunday.
Yet early promise once again gave way to a largely disappointing performance, which prompted his 68th-minute substitution by the new head coach, who replaced him with Rasmus Hojlund as United sought a winner.
Amorim, who takes his Old Trafford bow as head coach against Norwegian champions-elect Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League on Thursday, offered mitigation to Rashford, insisting that the role of central striker may not be the best fit for his skills.
But after the velvet glove came the iron fist as the Portuguese suggested Rashford must first want to reconnect with the player of 2022-23, who scored a career-high 30 goals, including 17 in the Premier League.
‘He has to be the first one to really want it’
“I will try to help him and that position is not the best one for him, especially in a game like that [against Ipswich] where he was, like, fighting with two giants,” said Amorim. “So we will try to find the right solution for him as for the other players.
Marcus Rashford of Manchester United is challenged by Dara O'Shea of Ipswich Town during the two sides' Premier League match at Portman Road on November 24, 2024 in Ipswich
Amorim said deploying the forward as a central striker against Ipswich was not the best fit
“But he has to be Marcus first of all, to try to return to that moment, and then he will have the help of all the staff and all the fans because he is a Manchester United boy. But he has to be the first one to really want it.”
Successive managers have found Rashford a mercurial talent, with off-field distractions stacking up in the debit column. Eyebrows were raised again a fortnight ago at the timing of a high-profile trip to New York in the days immediately before Amorim’s arrival at Carrington.
There is no doubting Rashford’s talent when on song, but the music has been intermittent. After making his debut in the dying months of Louis van Gaal’s tenure, and aside from his 30-goal season in Erik ten Hag’s first year in charge, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer got the best out of him, with two full seasons of more than 20 goals.
Mixed returns for Rashford
Since the second of those in 2020-21, Rashford’s returns have been decidedly mixed, with just five in 2021-22, 30 in 2022-23, then eight in Ten Hag’s second full season in 2023-24.
This season Rashford has completed 90 minutes just three times in a dozen top-flight appearances, scoring against Southampton and Ipswich. He has also scored twice against Barnsley in the League Cup and once in Europe against Porto.
While Rashford continues to split opinion among United fans, Amorim is already assured a warm welcome for his Old Trafford debut and he continued to ingratiate himself yesterday when asked about Ed Sheeran’s apology for gatecrashing a pitch-side Sky Sports interview last Sunday to say hello to Jamie Redknapp.
“It was nothing, a simple thing to say hello to one of the commentators,” he said. “I was with Roy Keane, who is a real star, so it was nothing.”
Ruben Amorim is interviewed by Kelly Cates (left) alongside Izzy Christensen, Roy Keane and Jamie Redknapp with Ed Sheeran crashing the interview after Man Utd's 1-1 draw against Ipswich at Portman Road 24 November 2024
Singer Ed Sheeran (2nd right) crashes Amorim’s interview with Kelly Cates (left), Roy Keane (centre), Izzy Christensen and Jamie Redknapp (right)
Striking a more serious note, Amorim insisted victory was not assured against a side who can secure a fourth Norwegian title in five years on Sunday, but was crucial for the momentum of his project.
“I am expecting a very good team who run a lot and that is a very good thing for us as we need to improve that,” he said. “They have some special players on the wings and they have that aura of winning games.
“Everybody said to me it will be a special time [in the stadium]. But I am just focusing on winning a game at Old Trafford as we need that momentum.”
‘I believe we can play in different systems’
Amorim doubled down on the importance of players adapting to his 3-4-3 system despite criticism, including from Danny Murphy, about whether he will be able to stick to it in the Premier League.
But he admitted he will be flexible enough to make subtle shifts when needed. “We will do it, we have to do it and when I talk about our structure, I believe we can play in different systems,” he said.
“Nowadays every team changes the dynamics, so we will adapt to that. I think our structure, the power of it, is to change the formation in each game.”
Amorim said he will rotate his squad, with Lisandro Martinez in contention to return, probably for Jonny Evans on the left side of a defensive three, after recovering from a back injury sustained on international duty.
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