Ruben Amorim dropped an eye-opening assessment on two important first-team Manchester United players ahead of the Premier League clash against Chelsea on Friday evening.
Manchester United will visit Stamford Bridge for their penultimate Premier League match in their lacklustre 2024-25 campaign ahead of the 2025 Europa League final.
The Red Devils languish in 16th place and United are one point clear of 17th-place Tottenham and a point behind 15th-place West Ham with two league matches left.
Ruben Amorim watched the Red Devils suffer their 17th Premier League defeat of the season after West Ham inflicted a 2-0 defeat on United at Old Trafford.
United struggled to fight back against West Ham last Sunday and the Red Devils dropped more points in their woeful Premier League season so far.
Amorim’s men are winless in the Premier League in their last five matches and United will end the current 2024-25 campaign outside of the top half of the table.
United’s lifeline for salvaging their abysmal season at Old Trafford is not dependent on whether the Red Devils can overcome Tottenham in the Europa League final in Spain.
READ MORE: Gary Neville singles out two Man Utd stars in Europa League prediction vs Tottenham, one team have ‘something in them’
Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images
Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images
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What Ruben Amorim had to say about Man Utd star Luke Shaw ahead of the Premier League tie vs Chelsea
Luke Shaw has endured another injury-hit season at Old Trafford and the Manchester United star has now been picking up minutes under Ruben Amorim.
The 29-year-old Red Devils left-back started the 2-0 defeat to West Ham last weekend and Amorim deployed Luke Shaw in the three-man backline.
Shaw completed the entirety of the first half and briefly played the second half before United manager Amorim withdrew him in the 52nd minute for Victor Lindelof.
Amorim had been forced at that time to take off Leny Yoro and had to replace him with Harry Maguire after the 19-year-old Frenchman suffered an injury in the match.
Speaking at his press conference ahead of the Chelsea match, Amorim insisted that he took United defender Shaw off to protect him from getting an injury as well.
“Yes, it was. It was clear we cannot take a risk with several players,” he said on Thursday, as per Manchester United’s official website.
“That was to save [Shaw], especially in that kind of position.”
READ MORE: Man Utd’s ‘flair’ ace ‘doesn’t suit’ Ruben Amorim’s tactical system, Ryan Giggs says he still ‘makes things happen’
Ruben Amorim spotlights Luke Shaw alongside Mason Mount for Man Utd amid the injuries to his first-team squad
Mason Mount has also seen his season disrupted by injuries before making his return to the United first-team squad and Amorim has been carefully managing the player.
Amorim suggested that United players like Luke Shaw and Mason Mount needed to be ‘built up’ over a period of time with their minutes to allow “them to cope” better.
The 40-year-old United manager added that Mount is “ready” after he has been managing the 26-year-old former Chelsea ace’s minutes since his return from injury.
“No, it’s the history [of our injuries]. It’s not what it’s going to be, it’s the history,” he said.
“We have to manage the minutes, like Mason Mount. Mason Mount is ready, but we are trying to build these guys a little bit longer for them to cope. Then, in the future, they will be okay.”
United and Chelsea’s Premier League contest at Stamford Bridge is slated for an 8:15pm kick-off time in the UK on Friday.