Ruben Amorim is under huge pressure to hit the ground running with Manchester United in 2025/26.
After a record-breaking 15th-place finish in the Premier League this season, all eyes will be on Ruben Amorim’s start to the new season.
Ineos expect Amorim to finish in the top six next season, with Manchester United solely focused on the Premier League after failing to qualify for Europe.
A summer overhaul is expected to take place and Ineos have already kickstarted the rebuild with a £62.5m signing of Matheus Cunha announced on Sunday.
Amorim will look forward to others joining his squad, but he will likely have to wait until 2026 to get one key player back available.
Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images
Ruben Amorim faces lengthy wait for Lisandro Martinez return
In the latter stages of the season, Amorim continued to experiment with his back three and it was often Luke Shaw who started as the left centre-back.
However, Shaw was awful in the Europa League final and it seems he has no future at United under Amorim and his 3-4-2-1 system.
Ideally, Amorim would have loved to have World Cup winner Lisandro Martinez available, but the 27-year-old is currently enduring a lengthy spell on the sidelines.
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Martinez tore his ACL in February, ruling him out for the rest of the season and large parts of next season.
According to the reliable Premier Injuries website, Martinez is expected to return in early 2026, meaning Amorim will have to cope without him for half the season.
Why Lisandro Martinez is key for Ruben Amorim
United players have admitted themselves that Martinez is the ‘hardest worker’ at Carrington and that is exactly the kind of player Amorim will want to keep around.
Since arriving as head coach, Amorim has demanded more intensity and physicality from his players – United’s “butcher” provides both in bucketloads.
Amorim’s back three is also well-suited to Martinez due to his ability in possession to break down defences and his aggression to step up into challenges.
READ MORE: What Matheus Cunha will bring to Manchester United, breaking down the elite impact-making signing
Martinez is also a leader in the dressing room and a proven winner having lifted the World Cup with Argentina.
United do have strong replacements for Martinez with the likes of Ayden Heaven and Leny Yoro both proving to be worthy of regular first-team starts, but Amorim will want the Argentine back sooner rather than later.