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Ruben Amorim is still finding his feet at Manchester United (Picture: Getty)
Former Manchester United assistant manager Rene Meulensteen fears that Ruben Amorim’s constant choping and changing is hindering Marcus Rashford.
Back-to-back defeats against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest have laid bare the challenge that Amorim faces following his arrival last month.
It remains early days for the Portuguese coach who is undoubtedly still getting accustomed to his squad ahead of the January transfer window.
But with several players still returning to full fitness, Amorim has been forced to ring the changes as he looks to stumble across a settled starting XI.
In his first four league games, Amorim has made at least three changes to the starting XI from the previous match each time.
Rashford, in particular, has been a victim of this rotation, starting Amorim’s first game against Ipswich Town up front before being moved out to the left side of a front three and now dropped to the bench for the last two games.
The Englishman has scored three goals in his only two starts under Amorim but still appears some way from his best form seen in a United shirt.
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Rashford has been in and out of Amorim’s starting XI (Picture: Getty)
And Meulensteen believes that Amorim’s constant tinkering with his side is not helping Rashford’s efforts to get back to his best.
‘Ruben Amorim needs to make it clear to Marcus Rashford of what he expects from him,’ he told Lucky Block.
‘All players need confidence – if he plays a lot and starts scoring goals then he’ll find his confidence again. He needs to stay in the same position and rebuild his form.
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Former United assistant manager Rene Meulensteen (Picture: Getty)
‘However, from what I’ve seen so far – and I don’t know whether Amorim does it on purpose – but he keeps moving and changing Rashford’s position in the team.
‘The system is the same but it always appears to be with different players. I don’t know whether he’s doing that to find his best XI, but at some point you need to get into a bit more of a consistent starting line up that you feel works best.
‘Let’s see what happens in the coming games and if he keeps chopping or changing. We can only wait and see, but Marcus has been in and out of the team and it doesn’t help him.’
Meulensteen, however, did urge Amorim to be ruthless in the January transfer window, citing big-money flop Antony as a player who should be moved on.
‘Manchester United might have to bite the bullet and cut their losses with Antony in January, because I don’t think he has the attributes to contribute to what Ruben Amorim wants,’ said Meulensteen
‘I find it difficult to see where he fits into this team. I think he’s been one of the biggest misfiring transfers in the Premier League in recent years.’
United will look to get back to winning ways in the Conference League on Thursday when they face Czechia side Plzen.
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