Manchester United’s players have three Premier League games to make their mark and earn a spot in the starting lineup for the Europa League final, but they will have to be managed to avoid injuries, boss Ruben Amorim said.
United advanced to the Europa League final, where they will face Tottenham Hotspur, after dispatching Athletic Bilbao on Thursday to give the Old Trafford side one more opportunity to qualify for the Champions League.
Amorim’s side are 15th in the Premier League ahead of Sunday’s game against West Ham United and with no hope of even a top-half finish, the Portuguese manager said training sessions would not be as strenuous after a gruelling season.
“We cannot save anything from the Premier League but I think it’s a good thing for them as we’ll not have a lot of training. They will fight for places in the final in these games,” Amorim told reporters.
“Against Brentford (a 4-3 loss), we had some mistakes that I felt some of our players were thinking about the game (second leg against Athletic Bilbao). So we have to manage that.
“But we also have to acknowledge that we are Manchester United and we need to win games, also in the Premier League. We have to use every game to improve, even to prepare for the final, but especially to prepare for the future.”
West Ham are 17th and can go a point clear of United if they win on Sunday, especially if Amorim rests his key players again.
Amorim admitted his side could have done better in the league and deserve all the criticism that has come their way, but he would take decisions that are best for the club.
“I agree with all the critics but, in this moment, I think it’s really clear and we have to be smart. We have to take a risk and we have to take the risk to get a lot of criticism from everybody,” he said.
“But I have to make a choice. What is the best for the club, not what is the best for me. I make a choice in this moment (that) I’m going to try to save all the players, because it’s really important for us to win the final.”
Amorim confirmed Bruno Fernandes had no injury concerns but Harry Maguire was a doubt.
