With a tough test at home to a resurgent Newcastle United side on the horizon, Ruben Amorim’s already waning attacking options at Manchester United look set to be even more depleted.
The former Sporting CP boss will be without his captain, Bruno Fernandes, for the visit of the Magpies, following his compatriot’s red card at Molineux, while it would appear likely that Marcus Rashford’s exile will continue amid a four-game absence for the Englishman.
With Mason Mount having also broken down with injury in the Manchester Derby, Amorim will be left to pick between Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Amad Diallo to operate in those two number ten berths.
It was only a few weeks ago, however, that Garnacho was left out of the trip to the Etihad – having scored just once under the new boss against Bodo Glimt – while Antony, meanwhile, has only netted once all season.
The burden then falls on Amad to create some magic for the Red Devils, although the Ivorian wizard could certainly do with some help in the January window.
Amad's rise at Man Utd
Eyebrows were raised back in October 2020 as reports emerged that United were set to fork out a fee of as much as £37m to sign a raw teenager from Atalanta. This was a player who, at the time, had chalked up just five senior appearances for the Serie A side.
Upon his eventual arrival in Manchester in January 2021, it’s fair to say that it took time for Amad to make his mark, albeit while scoring his first goal for the club with a deft, flicked header against AC Milan toward the end of that campaign.
Comparisons to a certain Lionel Messi hung in the air from his days in Bergamo, although United pleaded patience, ultimately sending the winger out on loan to Rangers in January 2022, before a further temporary stint was secured at Sunderland the following season.
With injury then impacting much of the 2023/24 campaign for the 22-year-old under Erik ten Hag – aside from his notable FA Cup strike against Liverpool – it looked like it would simply never happen for Amad at Old Trafford. Fast forward a few months, however, and the diminutive talent is now the man of the moment.
A strong pre-season was followed by a rare run of games under Ten Hag, resulting in notable highs such as the opener against Brighton and Hove Albion, although it wasn’t until Ruud van Nistelrooy’s interim appointment that Amad began to flourish, having scored twice and registered one assist in just four games under the Dutchman.
Manager
Games
Goals
Assists
Minutes played
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
8
1
1
329
Michael Carrick
0
0
0
0
Ralf Rangnick
1
0
0
68
Erik ten Hag
24
3
2
1058
Ruud van Nistelrooy
4
2
1
217
Ruben Amorim
10
2
5
731
Total
47
8
9
2403
Such momentum has been maintained under Amorim’s watch, with it taking just over a minute for the silky left-footer to make his mark at Ipswich Town, surging down the right flank before picking out Rashford with a somewhat wayward cross. When your lucks in.
A further four assists and two goals have since followed – including that winner in the Derby – with Amad’s rising stock epitomised by his status in the pecking order ahead of both Rashford and Garnacho.
Seemingly a perfect fit for one of the two roles behind the striker, the 5 foot 8 sensation could do with a suitable partner next to him. Cue the January window.
Man Utd's search for a playmaker
Funds, it must be said, are likely to be tight at Old Trafford in the New Year, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s succession of rather miserly budget cuts pointing to a quiet window as far as incomings are concerned.
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That said, a potential bargain opportunity could arise before too long, with The Times reporting earlier this week that United are among the clubs on ‘red alert’ should Barcelona’s Dani Olmo become available.
The Catalan side’s own financial constraints mean that there is a chance the Spain international could depart on a free transfer in January, should the club prove unable to register him. Any exit would represent a swift one, considering the 26-year-old, La Masia product only returned to Camp Nou on a £51m deal over the summer.
With Manchester City and Arsenal also in the frame, getting a deal over the line for the ex-RB Leipzig man may be tricky, yet there’s every reason to suggest it would prove a worthwhile investment.
What Dani Olmo would bring to Man Utd
While injury and eligibility has been a factor in an at-times stop-start season for Olmo, the playmaker has still managed to make his mark for Hansi Flick’s side, scoring five goals in just 11 La Liga outings.
In the Champions League, the one-time Dinamo Zagreb star has also chipped in with one goal and one assist in four appearances, with such fine form following his standout Euro 2024 campaign, in which he contributed three goals and two assists en route to La Roja’s glorious triumph.
Capable of operating in a number ten berth, or on the flanks, Olmo appears ready-made for Amorim’s 3-4-3 set-up, not least having also played in that system during his days in Germany under Julian Nagelsmann.
It could be said then that the Red Devils missed a trick by not snapping him up sooner, with former United star Louis Saha suggesting as much back in September, while insisting that the Barca man is in a “similar bracket to Bruno Fernandes”.
A playmaking, goalscoring presence like Fernandes – as shown by his 63 goals and assists in 148 games for Leipzig – Olmo could represent the perfect replacement or successor to the Portuguese, with the chance for United’s skipper to also drop deeper into the midfield two.
In essence, having Olmo operating behind the striker would be akin to utilising a right-footed Amad, with the pair deemed to be statistically similar players among those in their position across Europe’s top five leagues, according to FBref.
Indeed, Olmo averages 0.72 goals and assists per game in 2024/25 so far, while Amad is just behind, having averaged 0.68 in that regard. Equally, the pair are also alike in their work off the ball, with Olmo ranking in the top 17% across Europe for tackles made across the last 365 days, while his United counterpart is just ahead as he ranks in the top 3% in that regard.
That likeness can also be seen in their ability to beat a man down the flank, with Olmo averaging 1.4 successful dribbles per game in La Liga this season, while Amad averages 1.5 for that same metric in the Premier League. It certainly bodes well for what the Barcelona man could bring to the Theatre of Dreams to help bolster Amorim’s creative, attacking options.
Having previously snapped up that man Fernandes in the January window back in 2020, the Red Devils could repeat that trick with another statement signing in 2025.
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