Manager wants a small, committed group; Rashford among four Manchester United attackers expected to miss pre-season
Ruben Amorim is ready to make bold moves at Manchester United when pre-season commences, including freezing several first team players out of the squad.
The new United boss will begin his first full season at the club when the Premier League restarts in August, and he has decided that Marcus Rashford, Antony, Jadon Sancho, and Alejandro Garnacho will not be part of the club’s pre-season tour of the United States, according to The Sun.
If the players are yet to sign for a new club come July, they’ll be left behind to train separately at Carrington while the rest of the squad head across the Atlantic. Amorim is keen to work only with players who are hungry, committed and willing to fight for the shirt.
The bold call from the head coach comes after United finished 15th in the league and failed to qualify for any European competition. The Portuguese got off lightly because there was a sense that it was difficult for him to turn the team’s fortunes around having come in mid-season when the club were in crisis, and with several players unable to fit into his vision for the squad. In his first full season Amorim can expect much closer scrutiny.
A source familiar with the matter told The Sun that Amorim is “stamping his authority on the club”.
“It was hard arriving mid-season, but he now has the opportunity to shape the team in his image,” said the source. “And he’s wasting no time. He only wants players who would die for the shirt and are on board with his ideas.
“He also wants a smaller squad to create an intimate team bond so that everyone gets enough game time to be at peak fitness when called upon. He doesn’t want any bad apples or distractions.”
United started the summer transfer window well, sealing a £62.5m deal for Wolves forward Matheus Cunha. However, things seem to have cooled significantly. The club continue to chase Brentford attacker Bryan Mbeumo, for whom they saw a £55m bid rejected by Brentford. But there has been no serious progress since.
The club have also expressed interest in Sporting striker Viktor Gyokeres and have Napoli striker Victor Osimhen on their watchlist.
To keep spending this summer United need to sell players, and the potential exits of Rashford, Sancho, Garnacho and Antony could raise significant funds.
