Manchester United go into their match against Liverpool as underdogs, but their famous fan Luke Littler showed Ruben Amorim and his charges how to deliver on the big stage
Ruben Amorim is keen for his Manchester United players to take the lead of United fan and World Darts Championship winner Luke Littler as they prepare to face Liverpool, it has been claimed.
United travel to Anfield in the midst of a nightmare losing run. They haven’t scored in any of their last three league outings – defeats to Bournemouth, Wolves and Newcastle – and lost to Tottenham in the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup.
Littler, by contrast, was unflappable in his run to glory at Ally Pally. He overwhelmed Nathan Aspinall in the quarters and Stephen Bunting in the semis before cruising to a 7-3 victory over three-time champion Michael van Gerwen in the final.
Amorim and his United team will be up against is on Sunday, facing a Liverpool team with just one defeat all season. They recently stunned rivals Manchester City, though, and have seen the winning mentality of their famous fan reap rewards earlier in the week.
According to The Sun, Amorim wants his players to channel Littler’s self-belief and determination. In Friday’s final, the teenager raced into a 4-0 lead before clinching victory to become the youngest ever world champion.
United defender Harry Maguire congratulated Littler on his win, while former Red Devils star David Beckham also gave the champion his backing. “He said ‘Wow, well done’. I said ‘Thank you’,” Littler said of his messages with Beckham.
“Goes to show how well I’ve done for the sport. Not only for myself but the other hundreds of professionals out there. But to see the likes of David Beckham watching, it feels crazy.”
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Speaking to the media ahead of Sunday’s game, Amorim also praised United’s fans for the way they stuck with the team against Newcastle. Eddie Howe’s visitors led 2-0 within 20 minutes, but the home faithful remained in full voice during the second half, even as a result remained out of reach.
“What happened in the second half of the game – I had some friends there – it’s unbelievable,” Amorim said. “They support us and you can look at the table.
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“We lose four in a row and the supporters were amazing again, I cannot ask anything [more] for the support, maybe a little bit more patience. I cannot say nothing to the supporters. They are tired of this moment and we need to do our job to help the supporters in this moment.”
Amorim will be able to welcome back Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte for the match at Anfield. Both were suspended for the Newcastle game – Ugarte for accumulation of bookings and captain Fernandes for his red card in the defeat to Wolves.
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