Ruben Amorim has dispelled the popular theory about why he's rotating his team much at Manchester United.
Amorim, 39, is yet to name an unchanged XI since taking charge of the Red Devils last month, with the Portuguese also not afraid to make curious in-game substitutions. During Sunday's humiliating 3-0 loss at home to Bournemouth, Amorim made one change at half-time and then a further two subs before the hour mark.
His tendency to shuffle his defenders has come in for particular criticism, with former United captain Gary Neville among those to be left puzzled and one player privately questioning Amorim's approach. The common consensus has been that the ex-Sporting Lisbon boss wants to see as many players as possible ahead of the January transfer window, having fielded 24 different players in nine games.
But Amorim insists that isn't the reason. "In this moment it's not rotation to see the players and prepare the future, it's simply to not have injuries," he explained.
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"I just want to win games because I know that there is a long-term project and we are focused on that. I also know that big clubs don't have a lot of time and you have to win games, so I have a clear idea about the responsibility that I have here. But I'm trying to manage this team to not have injuries.
"If we have injuries it's a massive problem in trying to win games and manage all the players so I'm not rotating to see the future, I just want to win games and not have injuries."
Should Ruben Amorim start to rotate less? Have your say in the comments section.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - DECEMBER 22: Ruben Amorim, Manager of Manchester United, gestures as Rasmus Hojlund of Manchester United prepares to enter the pitch during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and AFC Bournemouth at Old Trafford on December 22, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)
Ruben Amorim hasn't found a settled Manchester United line-up
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Image:
Matt McNulty/Getty Images)
Neville's criticism of Amorim came after his fifth game, a limp 3-2 defeat against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford. In the 65th minute, Amorim changed two of his three-man defence, giving the team an entirely different look when they were still getting used to his 3-4-3 formation.
"When you keep changing players, when you keep changing your back three, when you take five players off, you're basically saying to all of them effectively - because they've been left out of the starting XI - you don't trust them," Neville told NBC Sports.
"[Erik] ten Hag kept doing that a few weeks ago where he kept changing the back players, changing the midfield. All of a sudden, you've got a completely different system, a completely different set of players on the pitch at the end of the game and you can never get stability or consistency. Just leave the players on. They actually weren't playing that bad in the first half."
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