Former Manchester United coach and chief scout Mick Brown has claimed that Ruben Amorim is set to primarily use Luke Shaw as a centre-back in his favoured 3-4-3 formation.
Shaw was on the pitch for 34 minutes during Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town at Portman Road. He came on from the bench for his first taste of action since February.
He replaced Jonny Evans, who was struggling a bit with the pace of the game.
Shaw has struggled with injuries, spending an extended period on the sidelines. While he lined up for England during the late stages of Euro 2024, he encountered a new setback just before United’s 2024/25 season opener.
When he was thrust into the action at Portman Road, Shaw assumed a left-centre-back role. He performed relatively well there, barely putting a foot wrong as United secured a lucky point.
According to the well-connected Brown, Shaw is set to mostly play in that position under Amorim.
Brown told Football Insider, “I’ve heard Amorim is going to experiment with his role. If we go back prior to his injury, he was often played as the left centre-back.”
“I remember a game against City in particular where he was brilliant there, and he looked to make that position his own.”
“And that’s where he came on again against Ipswich, when he replaced Evans. But that raises it’s own questions, like what does that mean for Martinez?”
Brown added, “You’ve got Dalot, Mazraoui and even Malacia as options for the wing-back position too. These are questions to which Amorim will have to find out the answers.”
“So he’s going to be used in that left-centre-back role but of course he’ll push forward sometimes as well because there are other players who will expect to start in those positions.”
Shaw will be hoping to get a start when United host FK Bodø/Glimt on Thursday.
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Derick Kinoti
Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
