“He has asked me to start against Leicester City on Sunday… So, he’s going to start 100%”: Ruud van Nistelrooy confirms Ruben Amorim has asked him to start using the player Erik ten Hag banned from the squad
Incoming Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim will be ‘rubbing his hands together’ after Amad Diallo’s two-goal performance in their 2-0 victory over PAOK in the Europa League, Sky Sports pundit Darren Ambrose said.
The Ivorian winger delivered one of his best games for the Red Devils on Thursday, opening the scoring in the 50th minute with a rare header before curling in his second 27 minutes later.
Diallo made a strong comeback in his first start for United in seven games, seemingly sending a positive message to Amorim, who takes charge of the club next week.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Ambrose praised the 22-year-old as ‘a real talent’ and suggested that Amorim will be eager to work with Amad upon his arrival in Manchester:
“Wow. He’s added another couple of goals to his name today, he is a real talent. Ruben Amorim is going to be watching this and rubbing his hands together and thinking, ‘I can’t wait to work with him’.”
Despite being named United’s Player of the Month in August, Diallo, valued at £19m, has largely struggled under Erik ten Hag since, making only his seventh start of the season on Thursday.
The 22-year-old, who joined United in January 2021 from Atalanta, has had loan spells at both Rangers and Sunderland before returning to Old Trafford in the summer of 2023.
An injury-plagued year limited him to just 12 appearances in 2023/24, with two goals and one assist in 471 minutes of action.
Diallo has already surpassed last season’s appearance tally, with 15 outings across all competitions, as well as his goal count, having netted three so far.
The Ivorian international will be hoping to have impressed Amorim on Thursday, ahead of the 39-year-old’s arrival at Carrington next week.
The Sporting Lisbon boss is expected to implement his favoured 3-4-3 formation at Old Trafford, while fans and pundits speculate on how Amorim may line up his first squad for United’s trip to Ipswich Town on 24 November.
