Manchester United manager, Ruben Amorim has told his players that they risk being left on the bench for the Europa League final if they don’t perform well against Chelsea.
He recently revealed that he is yet to decide on his starting XI vs Tottenham in Bilbao.
Speaking during an interview with the press, Amorim said that there is still one final chance for players to play themselves into the lineup for the Europa League final, and it is up to anyone wearing the club’s jersey to take it at Stamford Bridge.
He revealed that the 4-3 defeat vs Brentford two weeks ago was a result of some players already looking ahead of to the UEL final in Spain, and he hopes they’ll avoid a repeat of such performance in the game against Chelsea.
Ruben said that he would not tolerate any lack of focus against the Blues because it is very disrespectful to the club and the fans watching.
“I know already the starting XI I am thinking for Chelsea and then I will see.
The way we play there against Chelsea, I will see it and it is going to be important for the next one [against Tottenham].
It is going to be a massive part, this game, to the next one, so we need to perform and they need to perform, that is an important thing.
We cannot spend eight or nine days without a game, that is a bad thing for the final.
We have time to recover. The best thing to prepare for the final is to play the game and then the players have to understand if you play or don’t play against Chelsea, it means nothing to the final, that is important. I am just preparing the game against Chelsea. That is my focus and we want to win,” he said.
The Portuguese manager disclosed that despite the terrible run of form the club has endured in the EPL this season, consistent wins in the league are not very far away for Manchester United.
Amorim believes that his team created lots of great chances during the many games they’ve lost, so he only needs his players to be more clinical in front of goal to change those losses to victories.
He noted that it might be hard to convince anyone that things will improve in the EPL that quickly, but he intends to prove himself right once the new campaign begins.
“It is hard to talk about that without looking like a crazy guy but if you see the xG, for example, in the last games, ours is bigger, he said.
Against Wolves, we are so near and they score a set piece. It was the first time they reach our goal and they score and we had our opportunities, especially in the second half.
I can understand that but it is hard to talk about that in this moment. Let’s focus on finishing in a good way and then we will prepare the future in the end of the season,” he added.
