Ruben Amorim watched his Manchester United team come up short in the Europa League final against Tottenham on Wednesday and some of his prior concerns have now come to light
Ruben Amorim is said to have harboured concerns that some of his Manchester United players would struggle to match Tottenham physically prior to their Europa League final defeat.
The Red Devils travelled to Bilbao in the knowledge that victory would go some way to atoning for a catastrophic Premier League campaign. But United fell to a chastening 1-0 loss on the night, meaning they will end the campaign without a trophy and miss out on qualification for next year’s Champions League.
Tottenham have also struggled domestically this season but were not overly troubled by United, who succumbed to a scruffy Brennan Johnson goal towards the end of the first half.
And it’s now emerged per a new report from ESPN that Amorim headed to Bilbao with concerns over his team’s ability to compete physically in key areas of the pitch.
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It’s claimed that United’s head coach was worried his player would struggle with their opponents and that proved to be the case in midfield and attack, with Rasmus Hojlund struggling to get much change out of Cristian Romero and Micky van der Ven.
Victory for Ange Postecoglou’s side means United will not only miss out on European football completely for just the second time in 35 years but also the prospect of having to revise their summer transfer plans.
The riches of Champions League football would have provided Manchester United with a timely £100 million boost which would have significantly aided Amorim in his bid to rebuild.
He has, however, been told that the club will back him the transfer market with the Red Devils still expected to trigger the £62.5m release clause in Matheus Cunha’s contract.
As well as wrapping up a deal for the Wolves forward, United are also admirers of Liam Delap. The striker will leave Ipswich Town following their relegation from the Premier League and is available for just £30m due to a release clause of his own.
In terms of outgoings, Mirror Football outlined on Thursday that United will listen to serious offers for ALL of their players this summer in the wake of their failure to qualify for the Champions League.
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