Amad stakes Ruben Amorim claim as Man Utd star shows up struggling team-mates
Amad scored twice to power Manchester United to a win over PAOK in the Europa League, with his performance leaving his team-mates with much to do to dislodge him from the starting line-up
by Andy Dunn · The MirrorFor a player with his unremarkable statistics, Amad Diallo appears to rate himself pretty highly, hence the stony face when he was introduced in the dying stages of Manchester United’s previous European engagement.
Clearly unimpressed when Erik ten Hag only turned to him with a handful of minutes left against Fenerbahce in Istanbul, Amad clearly believes he should be higher in United’s attacking pecking order.
The Ivory Coast international is right. At the very least - and this is what you call damning with faint praise - he is a more effective and hardworking show-pony than Antony is.
Tracking back half the length of the field - diagonally - to make a routine tackle always goes down well with the faithful and Amad obliged on more than one occasion against limited opposition.
Marcus Rashford, take note. One of Amad’s issues, though, is commonplace amongst the relatively young talent at Old Trafford - his potential is taking way too long to develop into game-altering effectiveness.
But on this evidence, which included a neatly converted header and a fine individual effort, the 22-year-old can stake a claim to be a leading player in the Ruben Amorim era.
He is direct, he is quick, he is confident, his touch is good and he has a trick. Oh, and he kisses the badge. But Amad is definitely not all about flashiness, as his second of the night perfectly exemplified.
The finish might have needed the slightest help from a deflection but what was particularly significant was how Amad fought tenaciously to win possession from Abdul Baba in the first place. Again, the hard yards and the sweat are what the fans love to see.
When Ruud van Nistelrooy made three changes midway through the second half, it was Alejandro Garnacho who made way for Rashford. Rightly so. He might not be as far up the pecking order as he thinks he should be but Amad is getting there.
Eventually, Amad was replaced ahead of the final whistle, giving the crowd the chance to acclaim the outstanding individual performance of the night. In essence, this match - and this Sunday’s Premier League engagement with Leicester City - are auditions for the Amorim regime.
And there was a lot against the Greeks that will not have impressed the new manager. But that does not apply to Amad’s contribution. Judging by the way he was celebrating bare-footed on the pitch after the final whistle, there were no injury concerns behind Amad’s late withdrawal.
After this, he will be chomping at the bit to get a Premier League start on Sunday, even though Van Nistelrooy does have several attacking options.
But even if it means Rashford missing out, or even if it means Garnacho missing out, Amad must start against Leicester City. After that, it is the start of the Amorim age … and it just might be the start of the Amad age.
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