Amorim discusses captaincy amid praise for Maguire

Friday 27 December 2024 13:30

Following Bruno Fernandes’s dismissal at Molineux, Ruben Amorim will be forced to select a new stand-in skipper for the Reds’ next game, against Newcastle United.

In a pre-match press conference for the Magpies fixture – conducted in the aftermath of our defeat in the Black Country on Boxing Day – Amorim was asked about his upcoming decision by the journalists present.

The Portuguese remained tight-lipped on which member of the squad would get the nod in Bruno’s absence, but did reveal his satisfaction about the form of Harry Maguire, who is a potential candidate to take the armband.

Maguire was, of course, our club captain between 2019 and 2023, and has performed well since returning from injury at the start of December.

Following our memorable derby win at the Etihad Stadium earlier this month, Amorim even described our no.5 as “perfect” for the central-defensive role in our new three-at-the-back system.

“You will have to wait until the game and see the captain,” responded our head coach, when Bruno’s suspension for the Newcastle game was put to him.

“What do I think of Harry? He works really well – he is focused on the job and not what people say. He has no excuses, even if he had some tough moments. I think in that department he is an example.

“He is there to play, to help the team and he’s trying to do that.”

This will be the second time in 2024/25 that Bruno will miss a game due to suspension, following our Europa League match against Fenerbahce in Istanbul back in October.

Fernandes missed that trip after receiving two yellow cards in our 3-3 draw with Porto, and the armband was subsequently taken by Lisandro Martinez in Turkey.

Of course, Erik ten Hag was still United’s head coach at that point, and we don’t know how Amorim will approach a similar scenario.

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United take on Newcastle at Old Trafford on Monday evening (20:00 GMT), and the two teams could hardly be heading into the fixture with more contrasting emotions.

Eddie Howe’s team have won their last four games in all competitions, and by an aggregate score of 14-1, while United have lost every match since triumphing in the Manchester derby on 15 December.

But the north-east club have an extremely poor Premier League record in M16, winning just one of their 29 visits. Their only success came in 2013, when a Yohan Cabaye winner was enough to beat David Moyes’s United.

Amorim discusses captaincy amid praise for Maguire