The Manchester United head coach quipped that Bruno Fernandes may want his job after the skipper was seen at training and remained a vocal leader while recovering from injury.
Setback Timeline for the United Captain
Fernandes could be out for up to three more weeks after picking up a hamstring issue in United’s narrow loss at Aston Villa on 21 December. Questioned if the Portuguese star is still an influence on the team, Amorim offered a humorous response regarding his own role.
“He’s the guy that is watching training even after treatment. He makes the effort,” Amorim stated of his compatriot. “I'm not sure if he wants my job or not, but he’s a leader. He cannot be that guy that when he is not playing, he’s not talking and speaking. He is constantly communicating. That is the reason he’s the captain. He has bad things sometimes, the way he moves his arms, but has a lot of good things too. So there are a lot of things that you don’t see but that he does. He’s a great leader all the time.”
Eager for Comeback and Squad News
Fernandes is already pushing to start working again. “Bruno has been insisting that he needs to train, but we don’t know,” the manager commented. “There is absolutely no possibility he is going to play against Wolves, it's not happening.”
While United host Wolves, Amorim is unsure whether Mason Mount will be available after he was removed at half-time of Boxing Day’s 1-0 win over Newcastle.
“It is unclear how Mase is going to be for that game,” said Amorim. “Kobbie Mainoo is also not going to be ready, Bruno, Matt [De Ligt] and Harry [Maguire] are not going to be ready. So I think we are not going to have more players.”
If Mount is ruled out this will mean eight players are unavailable as Noussair Mazraoui, Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo are at the AFCON tournament.
Recovery Prospects for Key Players
When asked if any of the injured might recover for United’s trip to Leeds, Amorim provided an update: “Mainoo is going to start training on the pitch also, so we will see. De Ligt is having some difficulties. Harry’s the same, so I don’t know.”
Looking Ahead the Upcoming Fixture
The recent victory over Newcastle lifted them to 29 points and a season-high fifth. Despite the fact that Wolves have only two points, Amorim pointed to their narrow defeat at Arsenal, which came only after a 94th-minute own-goal.
“They show against Arsenal, they could get at least one point. So in the Premier League you never know. They face challenges, we have our problems but there are no excuses. We must secure victory, we will try to win the game.”
