Ruben Amorim must change his approach with Manchester United strikers before it's too late - chof 360 news

Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund

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It can't have done the already fragile confidence of Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund much good to see a midfielder starting as Manchester United's striker ahead of them last weekend.

The Kobbie Mainoo experiment didn't work for United beyond a bright opening 10 minutes, and Zirkzee and Hojlund were eventually called on simultaneously. Their introduction didn't change the game; it was another Old Trafford defeat for Ruben Amorim's side.

In hindsight, there may have been something in this selection coming the day before deadline day. It was Amorim's last throw of the dice. The modern-day equivalent of Harry Redknapp winding down his window to speak to the TV cameras at the training ground of whatever club he was in charge of.

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Amorim could have been making a point. Neither of my strikers is up to the job, so I'm playing a midfielder there. Sort it out by tomorrow. If so, the message didn't get through. United failed with late moves for Christopher Nkunku and Mathys Tel, and they will limp on for the rest of the season with just four forwards in the squad.

Amad and Alejandro Garnacho seem too valuable as No. 10s to be played as No. 9s, and it's safe to assume the Mainoo experiment is unlikely to be repeated. So, for the remainder of this season, it is Hojund or Zirkzee for Amorim, starting with Leicester City in the FA Cup on Friday night.

So far, it seems Amorim prefers Hojlund. The Dane has started 12 games under the Portuguese head coach, and Zirkzee just six. But there has been rotation. Hojlund has completed 90 minutes only three times under Amorim and Zirkzee once.

Both are out of form at the moment. The Danish striker hasn't scored since December 12, and Zirkzee last scored on December 19. You can see why Amorim wanted reinforcements in January.

Now, he has to plot a way through the rest of the season with what he has. United's Premier League campaign is essentially already over, but they can still win the FA Cup and, more importantly, given the reward of Champions League football on offer, the Europa League.

Amorim somehow has to rebuild the confidence of his strikers. A run of three successive clear midweeks should help develop playing patterns and embed more familiarity with the system at Carrington. As Lisandro Martinez said after he scored at Fulham, United weren't playing to their strengths, sending too many long balls for the forwards to fight and scrap for.

That is happening because the team doesn't have the patterns or understanding to work the ball forward on the floor. After failing to find a way to progress the ball, the default option is to go long, and it doesn't give Hojlund or Zirkzee much of a chance.

That is something that Amorim has to change on the training pitches, but it might also be time to back one of his two strikers and try and play them into form. Hojlund is the more likely to find a scoring touch, just as he did a year ago when he hit seven goals in six games between mid-January and mid-February.

That golden touch hasn't looked like returning recently, but the 22-year-old is the player with the higher ceiling and the most likely to make an impact. He is also the striker who looks the best stylistic fit for Amorim, with his pace beyond the last line and ability to run the channels.

Admittedly, he did start five games in a row recently without showing signs of his confidence returning, but United's lighter schedule this month should be beneficial. They will play four games between now and the start of March.

Amorim has tried several tricks to get one of his forwards firing. Having been left without a new face in January, it might be time to nail his colours to the mast and see if a more consistent approach to selection brings rewards.

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