The Manchester United squad are set to undergo a huge culling in the upcoming summer window so the remaining fixtures this season are effectively an audition for every player.
From ability to availability, everything will come under the scanner for the players so if they can provide something extra, it’s worth gold dust.
Ruben Amorim has repeatedly stressed the need to have “leaders” in the dressing room more than just Bruno Fernandes, who he’s raved about repeatedly.
Now, he has revealed that apart from Fernandes, United also have another leader whose leadership style couldn’t be more different from the Portuguese, but it’s nonetheless extremely effective.
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images
Ruben Amorim on Man Utd’s ‘really quiet’ leader
When it comes to the current Man United squad, Bruno Fernandes stands head and shoulders above any other player in terms of his leadership qualities.
However, his style of captaining isn’t to everybody’s liking, with his frustrated gestures on the pitch often bringing him under hot water from the likes of Roy Keane and more.
Those detractors will probably like what Amorim has had to say about another leader in the dressing room who rarely speaks but commands respect when he does.
In an interview with TNT, the Man Utd manager revealed that in the dressing room, Noussair Mazraoui is generally ‘really quiet’ but ‘everybody listens’ when he talks.
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He said: “Nous [Mazraoui] is really quiet but you can feel it when he talks, everybody listens. So we have these kinds of leaders in the dressing room, but we need confidence. When we are winning, everyone is going to show a different side of themselves.”
Noussair Mazraoui is crown jewel of a successful window
This is not the first time that Amorim has namechecked Mazraoui as someone he really rates highly.
Amorim called Mazraoui the “future” of the club not long ago and the Moroccan’s performances, regardless of where he plays, have lent strength to that claim.
Combined with the context of his transfer fee and surprising reliability (he was slightly injury-prone in Germany), he’s been the crown jewel of what is turning out to be a very successful first window with Ineos at the helm.
Amorim also reserved praise for another leader in the dressing room in the same interview, also an Ineos signing – Matthijs de Ligt.
He said: “Matta [de ligt] wants to be a leader. He’s not a leader like Bruno, but he’s a different leader, the way he works.”
Having different leadership styles in the dressing room is a recipe for success in the long term and for United to get two in the same window speaks to their successful business.
May it continue for a long time to come!