Ruben Amorim’s first game in charge of Manchester United against Ipswich Town is just days away and plenty of changes are expected, both tactically and personnel-wise.
The Portuguese’s training sessions have shown that he will be sticking to his favoured 3-4-3 formation, which means playing with three at the back.
Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof and Lisandro Martinez are all sidelined and for now, the ex-Sporting Lisbon boss seems to be putting his faith in Leny Yoro and Luke Shaw, both of whom only recently returned from a long-term injury.
The Frenchman arrived in the summer and was incidentally, the Red Devils’ costliest buy in the last transfer window but unfortunately suffered an injury in pre-season.
Yoro was asked to withdraw
With the former Lille star at the back, Amorim can be quite confident about playing a high line due to the Frenchman’s recovery pace on offer.
As per The Manchester Evening News, the 19-year-old was initially scheduled to play for the U21s against Altrincham in the National League Cup.
However, Amorim asked him to withdraw after taking a look at him in training. This indicates that Yoro is inching closer to full fitness and the coach does not want to take any risks with the defender finally set to make his debut for the first team on Sunday.
“Yoro, who is now involved in team training after recovering from a metatarsal fracture, was informed on Monday he was due to start at Altrincham in the 4-0 National League Cup victory.
“He was removed from the squad after training under new head coach Ruben Amorim. Yoro is expected to have a key role in Amorim’s new set-up as United transition to a 3-4-3 formation and the 19-year-old could make his debut away at Ipswich Town on Sunday.”
New-look team
Matthijs de Ligt is set to return from international duty soon and the Netherlands international could be utilised from the start, while the France U23 international comes on as a substitute.
Amorim has to be careful with Yoro’s minutes and drip feed him minutes in order to avoid further complications. Something his predecessor did not bother with.
Erik ten Hag ran players into the ground and hardly rotated, which in turn, lead to a glut of injuries to key stars as Shaw will attest to.
The England international also only just returned to training along with fellow left-back Tyrell Malacia. It will be interesting to see the matchday squad for the trip to Portman Road.
Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
