Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has been blasted for making one “massive mistake” as his side were beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United on Monday night.
The Red Devils were dealt a fresh blow on Monday night as they were beaten 2-0 at home by Newcastle, who deserved to win via a grander scoreline.
Under new head coach Amorim, Man Utd have lost six of their previous eleven matches in all competitions. This form leaves them only seven points clear of the relegation zone.
Amorim was appointed as Erik ten Hag’s replacement in November but is already under pressure as one of the Premier League sack race leaders.
The 39-year-old is facing immense difficulties while trying to implement his preferred 3-4-3 system. His decision to select veteran pair Casemiro and Christian Eriksen as his pairing in central midfield pairing quickly backfired against Newcastle as he made changes before half-time.
Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel thinks it was a “massive mistake” to select Casemiro – who has reportedly ‘agreed’ a move to the Saudi Pro League – and Eriksen as they were “awful to watch”.
“There’s no way, and I hope this never happens again, that you see Casemiro and Eriksen play in the midfield for Manchester United,” he said on the Obi One Podcast.
“Who is going to run for who? If you’re a 30-something-year-old midfield player or a player, you need a younger player beside you who can compensate because you don’t have the legs to run anymore.”
“You need a young player, fresh legs, energetic, who is going to be able to cover that ground for you.
“When you have those two, who is going to help who? Who is going to run for who? So for me, it’s a massive, massive mistake, it’s awful to watch.”
MORE MAN UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Man Utd: New ‘factor’ behind Rashford omission revealed after Amorim ‘asked’ about ‘night out’
👉 Amorim confirms deal to aid ‘starving’ Man Utd as Wayne Rooney return mooted
👉 Man Utd: Ruben Amorim told Red Devils star ‘would be done’ under Sir Alex Ferguson
On Casemiro, he added: “Listen, brilliant players have talked about it. We’ve all said it: Casemiro is a fantastic player, he’s played for Real Madrid, he’s won so much, he’s been an absolutely fantastic servant for football, he done everything.
“But when your legs are gone, your legs are gone. There’s nothing else you can do, especially in the Premier League. You will get found out.”
Despite this, Obi Mikel has backed Amorim to get it right at Man Utd as his current squad is “nowhere near good enough”.
“Even if you’re not a United fan, it’s awful to watch them. They’re horrendous. Newcastle would’ve been 3-0 up in 20 minutes. It was a disaster,” Obi Mikel continued.
“Listen, it’s not the manager’s fault at all. Ruben Amorim is a fantastic and brilliant young manager.
“I’ve said it when he came into the club – the players in United, I’m sorry, they are nowhere near good enough to be playing for Manchester United.”
