Ruben Amorim may need to bring back Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho when Manchester United take on Liverpool this weekend, reckons Gary Neville.
The Red Devils suffered their ninth defeat in just 19 Premier League games this season on Monday night, losing 2-0 at home to Newcastle United.
The latest timid capitulation was their fifth defeat in six league matches and leaves Amorim’s side 14th in the table, just seven points above the relegation zone.
Their form is in stark contrast to their great rivals, Liverpool, who are sitting pretty at the top of the table, eight points clear of their nearest rivals after three straight wins.
United go to Anfield on Sunday and Neville admits he is clutching at straws when looking for ideas on how his former side can compete with Arne Slot’s team.
He suggests leaning on the one good result in recent weeks, a win over Manchester City, and also bringing Rashford and Garnacho back into the starting line-up as, despite Amorim’s clear issues with the pair, they will provide a threat to Liverpool.
‘I have no idea how they approach this game on Sunday,’ Neville admitted on his Sky Sports podcast. ‘Manchester Untied have gone there many times in the lats few years and it’s been tough, very tough.
‘You’re just wondering, what can Ruben Amorim do in these next few days…obviously the only thing he can do is point towards Manchester City.
‘Obviously players will come back, maybe, and things will improve, maybe. I’m not going to harp on about Garnacho and Rashford because if they’ve not been showing the attitude in training then don’t bring them back in. But they are better than what we’re seeing out there on the pitch.
‘They’ve got legs. If Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold are thinking about lining up against [Joshua] Zirkzee and Bruno [Fernandes] or [Christian] Eriksen in those pockets, they probably wouldn’t want to play against Garnacho and Rashford. That’s the reality of it. Who do they not want to play against?
‘That will be difficult for Amorim because he wants to set a new culture, standard and expectation in the dressing room of what’s right and he’s not liked some of the things that he’s seen in the last month or so. But we’re back at needs must, it’s desperate at this moment in time.
‘Manchester United are only seven points off relegation. It’s a really tough moment, this.’
Garnacho and Rashford were on the bench against Newcastle, with the Englishman back in the squad after missing out for four games on the spin.
The Argentina international was called upon in the second half but Rashford remained an unused substitute.
On why Rashford was back in the squad, Amorim said before the Newcastle match: ‘Selection, and we have a lot of players out.
‘So like I said every week, I choose my players, he was there to be chosen and this time he’s here.’
Bruno Fernandes and Manuel Ugarte were both suspended for the defeat to Newcastle and will be available against Liverpool.
They will provide more options in midfield after Amorim’s decision to start Christian Eriksen and Casemiro together on Monday was slammed by Jamie Carragher.
‘These players can’t run. We know that,’ he told Sky Sports. ‘That is on the manager putting these two players in that position and in that system. It is a major flaw. These two players can’t cover it.
‘I’ve got no criticism at all with Eriksen or Casemiro. That is the manager’s fault. There is no way that plan could have worked in any way shape or form.’
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