Man Utd lost 1-0 to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday night.
Ruben Amorim defended the decision to introduce Harry Maguire as a striker in Manchester United's 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Tuesday night. Anthony Elanga scored the only goal as United fell to a narrow defeat at the City Ground, in a match when they produced an improved performance compared with recent weeks.
Joshua Zirkzee started the match in what was one of four changes to the starting line up from Amorim, though Rasmus Hojlund was introduced at half-time to provide a greater attacking threat in the final third. United continued to push for an equalising goal but with options limited, were forced to introduce Maguire as a striker for the last five minutes of the match.
The 32-year-old posed a threat with his aerial presence and almost scored a dramatic equalising goal when he improbably headed wide from close range after a cross into the box. The decision to bring Maguire on highlighted just how few options Amorim has at his disposal, and after the game, he explained the tactical decision.
Why Harry Maguire played upfront for Manchester United
Speaking after the defeat to Nottingham Forest, Ruben Amorim explained the decision to bring Harry Maguire on as a striker as Manchester United pushed for a late equaliser.
“In the end of the game, when the opponent is just protecting the box, if you look at the central defenders of Nottingham, they are really comfortable and then with a line of six, we can reach the final third but then we have to put the ball inside the box because it is hard to make combinations to get inside the box to score the goals,” he said.
“Harry Maguire when he is attacking set-pieces, he is maybe the best player in our team. So inside the box you are not a defender, you are a striker. It was the idea to put one man who is really good in the air to score a goal.”
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