Former Manchester United forward Louis Saha has named the one player he would like new head coach Ruben Amorim to steal from rivals Arsenal.
Amorim has been appointed to replace Erik ten Hag at Man Utd. Under him, the Premier League giants are unbeaten in three matches.
The Red Devils were held to a 1-1 draw at Ipswich Town in Amorim’s first game. Then last week, his side battled back from behind to beat Bodo-Glimt 3-2 and hammered Everton 4-0 at Old Trafford.
Man Utd have a much sterner test on Wednesday night as Amorim takes his team to The Emirates to face Premier League title challengers Arsenal.
Ahead of this match, ninth-placed Man Utd are four points adrift of the Champions League places, while Arsenal are nine points short of table-toppers Liverpool.
United are a few levels below Arsenal and other sides at the top of the Premier League and Amorim will likely look to overhaul his squad in 2025.
The 39-year-old has the best goalkeeper in the Premier League and he’s named the “future” of Man Utd, but Saha has named Martin Odegaard as the one player he’d love his former club to sign from Arsenal.
“Odegaard is someone that I really like. His intelligence as a provider is similar to Bruno Fernandes. I like his capacity to be in and out of the box. The area that he’s playing, sometimes he’s playing deep, sometimes he’s playing really high,” Saha said.
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“He provides the connection with the midfield and the strikers, so I really like his positioning.
“I would think that that’s what United needs to create chances, to create a high tempo, to create a bit of extra quality. Technically, when there is a bit of pressure, you can still give him the ball and it doesn’t matter to him.
“So I would say Odegaard, even if I think physically, we perhaps need a player like Declan Rice in midfield.”
Saha has also encouraged Man Utd’s players to “create an improvement benchmark” when they face Arsenal as Mikel Arteta’s side are a “different animal” to Amorim’s recent opponents.
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He added: “The players need to actually use this platform against Arsenal to create an improvement benchmark. Arsenal is definitely a different type of animal to the opponents that Amorim has faced so far.
“The quality of Arsenal going forward is just amazing and will provide way more trouble that we had against Everton. Definitely, it’s going to be a big test and United need to be in their top form and full of confidence.
“Tactically, it will maybe provide a bit more understanding, because he may have chosen a certain type of plan based on the players that he’s got. Maybe you will see something closer to the first 11 that he wants to play week in week out.
“It will be a huge test, but if they do win, it’s a massive statement. I’m sure the manager is looking forward to this type of fixture.”
