There is hope and optimism around Manchester United again after some recent good news off the field was followed by a positive result on the pitch.
Man Utd thumped Real Sociedad 4-1 in what was arguably the finest display by the team under Ruben Amorim, a glimpse into what a fully functional squad could look like.
The Man Utd manager praised various players after the game, hinting that he’s finally getting close to his ideal team, even if injuries haven’t allowed him full freedom.
Amidst all the noise, he also sent a clear challenge to a youngster after the Sociedad game, a challenge which the player can answer in no uncertain terms against Leicester City.
Photo by Alex Dodd - CameraSport via Getty Images
Photo by Alex Dodd – CameraSport via Getty Images
Ruben Amorim’s challenge
Amorim has generally been heavily backed by the Man Utd fans even when the results haven’t gone the right way, which has been an awful lot of times.
However, one criticism he has received repeatedly is his reticence to throw in young talent in the chaos of this season.
Only Chido Obi has managed to break through semi-regularly, and even he hasn’t played after that glorious cameo vs Fulham.
One youngster he did trust vs Sociedad was Ayden Heaven, the manager giving the defender his first start for United and Heaven shone against Sociedad.
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Amorim could’ve easily played Victor Lindelof as the “safe” option but threw the dice on Heaven and the player ensured Amorim’s gamble didn’t backfire.
However, the manager was eager to bring Heaven back down to earth after the game, saying that he’ll face a “different challenge” in the Premier League against “different kind of player”.
He said: “He has a lot of work to do in the Premier League. We will face a different kind of player and he will be tested in a different kind of way, so we are trying to manage all of this because he is still really young.”
Ayden Heaven can silence doubters vs Leicester
So far, Heaven has had a brilliant cameo against Arsenal, then followed it up with another great performance vs Sociedad.
However, Arsenal play without a natural striker, while the pace of the game in Europe is more comfortable than in the Premier League.
Therefore, in many ways, it is easy to understand what Amorim was talking about when he said Heaven will be tested in a “different way” soon.
Leicester pose a multi-faceted threat up top, with Jamie Vardy’s guile, Patson Daka’s pace, Jordan Ayew’s off-the-ball running, and Stephy Mavdidi’s trickery.
More importantly, this is not a “marquee” game, by its traditional definition, which the previous two fixtures were, so he’ll have to get himself up for this one.
He can really silence his doubters by putting in a commanding display, provided Amorim trusts him again.
Heaven has given no reason to Amorim to not trust him anymore.