Ruben Amorim rates Patrick Dorgu debut for Man Utd after putting Roy Keane in place over shock decision

Ruben Amorim has explained why he put Patrick Dorgu at right wing-back on his Manchester United debut and said whether it will happen again after the decision was questioned by pundits like Roy Keane.

Dorgu was Man Utd’s main January signing, brought in to help them out on the left-hand side as a wing-back. Luke Shaw’s fitness issues and Tyrell Malacia’s loan move to PSV meant a place was there waiting for Dorgu to fill.

But when making his Man Utd bow in their FA Cup win over Leicester City, Dorgu was deployed on the right-hand side. Diogo Dalot, who is right-footed, stayed on the left.

And the experiment lasted for just 45 minutes, until Amorim took Dorgu off at half-time.

Ex-United captain Keane was among those puzzled by the decision-making, hinting it was ‘unfair’.

“There is a lack of belief, lack of confidence,” Keane told ITV. “They’ve brought new players in, you’re thinking he’s going to play in his position and he’s playing right wing-back. You think, is that unfair on players?”

Despite this, Amorim has justified his decision to use his new signing on the right flank, reminding that he’s played a lot there for his former club, Lecce.

“No, he played a lot of times in Lecce on the right,” Amorim said. “That is one of the characteristics that we pay attention to a lot, to have a player like him.

“He was a little bit anxious in the first touch with the ball. It’s a different league for him, different speed of the game, but he did well.

“He has pace, he has strength, he’s going to improve a lot. And we, as a team, we need to play better to help these new guys to perform at the right level. But the position, and you can can see in Wyscout that he’s played in both sides.”

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Will Dorgu play on the right again?

Amorim was asked if he put Dorgu on the side closer to the dugouts so he could talk him through the game more, but the head coach denied it.

Instead, he explained why he gave plenty of instructions to the debutant.

“I was giving a lot of information because if you see, building up, sometimes the left defender, the full-back, is the [one] more building up,” Amorim added. “So we make one pressure to one side, and then they change completely for this game. And we have to manage to change everything.

“So I was trying to help Dorgu to manage the game. And he has like three training [sessions], so it was really hard for him. But it was not like that, [he] helped us a lot. The communication [is] there, but it was not that idea.”

And Amorim has not ruled out playing Dorgu as a right wing-back again. In fact, he explained why it could be useful.

“Yes. Again, if you’re going to see the history of Dorgu in the last team, he played a lot of games also on the right. And we have to have wingers that can play both sides, like Dalot,” he continued.

“So I think it’s a really good, important thing, because sometimes you need a left-footer on the right side to come inside and to connect in the different way. And sometimes you need the right-footed [player] to connect and to cross more balls, so it’s like that.”

What’s next in the Man Utd rebuild?

Dorgu was the only player Man Utd bought in January who is immediately ready for their first team.

In the summer, though, they could have bigger plans, depending on their budget.

Top of Amorim’s wish list could well be a reliable striker and reports have emerged claiming United have a deal ‘in place’ for Viktor Gyokeres.

United have also been backed to make the most of a gentlemen’s agreement that can help them sign RB Leipzig attacking midfielder, Xavi Simons.

And TEAMtalk can confirm United have still been looking at Crystal Palace midfielder, Adam Wharton.

Where was Dorgu playing for Lecce this season?