Man Utd only have the Europa League left to play for this season, with former striker Louis Saha claiming it could take up to two years for Ruben Amorim to rebuild the team.
Ruben Amorim could need up two years to rebuild Manchester United, according to former striker Louis Saha.
United take on Real Sociedad in the last 16 of the Europa League tonight, needing to lift the trophy to clinch a Champions League place for next season.
Amorim’s side are down in 14th place in the Premier League, after their worst season of the modern era, with former United forward Saha claiming it could take two years to restore the confidence of the squad.
“If you join a club like Manchester United, you want to win the Premier League and who’s going to blame you for that?” said Saha.
“No-one will call you arrogant, because it’s Manchester United. Even if you can’t win the league, you need to believe that you can and that’s how competitors are.
“The reality is that the challenge is way bigger than Amorim expected, and we can see the players aren’t playing with the confidence they need at this level and if they want to go and win the Premier League.
“It doesn’t mean the players aren’t capable of winning the league, it’s just that something is missing in them at the moment.
“It’s sad, because you have to concede that it’s going to take a year or two for Amorim to build their confidence back up.
“He may have thought that by coming in with a certain type of communication and style of play, that some of the players would have shined a bit more but that hasn’t been the case.
“It’s nowhere near the standard to win the title because they need consistency and a level of confidence that is way higher than where they are.
“Almost every half, Manchester United concede a goal and then they always need to fight back but that’s not normal. No champion will concede that many goals in the first half.”
Saha also claimed there is too much pressure on United captain Bruno Fernandes to keep digging the team out of trouble.
Fernandes is United’s top scorer this season with 11 goals and has been their best player by far, with Saha claiming more players need to step up.
“We’re asking way too much of Bruno,” said Saha. “They must be a team and that will make them less exposed.
“When you’re the best player in the team, you get the weight of United’s expectations on your shoulders and that’s what has happened with Bruno.
“When you’re the best player, they need you to be the leader and the one who takes the team up a level. You also get scrutinised way more than everyone else, which isn’t fair.
“There should be at least three or four players at Bruno’s level so when he has an off day, someone else can step up to the plate but that’s not the case.
“The weight on Bruno is enormous and that’s why people say he should be doing this or that, but I feel the standard of the team isn’t right and that’s why every player gets exposed.
“When I played, we were never exposed because we had Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes, Ronaldo and all those players could shine. Even if one of them had an off day, at least one of them would step up. We were a team.
“It’s too much to ask of Bruno and there’s too much weight on him. He’s just a human being and it’s unfair. For his career, I support him, and his body language says that he needs help from his teammates, more connection with the fans and I’m frustrated for him.”
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