Manchester United star accused of ‘taunting’ Ruben Amorim has been left out of the starting XI against Crystal Palace
Manager Ruben Amorim has left Patrick Dorg out of Manchester United’s starting XI for the game against Crystal Palace after the player appeared to be mocking him on social media. Earlier this month, Dorgu’s Instagram account liked a post criticizing Amorim’s team selection, sparking speculation about a possible rift between the two.
The post included a screenshot of a comment from X that read: “Any manager who sees Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes as viable pivots is not serious.”
There is no concrete evidence linking Mr. Amorim’s decision to Mr. Dorg’s social media activity. However, the Denmark international had started United’s last two games, a 1-0 defeat at Everton and a 2-2 draw at Tottenham.
He was replaced by Diogo Dalot at left wing-back, with Amad Diallo filling in on the right in front of a back three of Luke Shaw, Matthijs de Ligt and Lenny Yolo. Meanwhile, Dolgu had to settle for a seat on the bench.
Speaking to TNT Sports on Sunday, Amorim insisted his selection was determined solely by Carrington’s performance on the practice field. He said, “That’s how you train.
read more: Ruben Amorim says he feels ‘anxious’ every time a Manchester United player touches the ballread more: Manchester United legend reveals the moment he wanted to say ‘shut up Roy Keane’
“They’ve trained really well, so have the other players, and tactically. Mason Mount is really smart and gives us more possession. He’s intense and he can score goals, so we need another player near the box.”
This comes after Amorim admitted Dorgu was suffering a crisis of confidence after missing a golden chance to equalize against Everton. “Every time Patrick touches the ball, you can feel the anxiety. I feel that anxiety too,” said the Portuguese coach.
“If you look at Patrick playing for the national team, he scored a great goal against Scotland, but the decisions he made under pressure were completely different to the decisions he makes in our team. I think this is a decision. He needs to be more calm and play the game.”
“I remember the shot against Everton. It was an easier decision than the one he had to make when he had the Scottish guy. I saw it when he was playing in Italy too. But here again it’s different and the pressure can be difficult for them at first. He had time to improve.”
Dorg is Amorim’s first major signing at United, having joined from Lecce midway through last season for £25m. He quickly became a regular in the side, and Amorim was happy to use him as the team’s only viable wing-back.
However, a period of inconsistent form tempered some of the excitement following his arrival. He started United’s opening five league games this season, but was on the bench for the next four.
He returned to the starting lineup against Tottenham earlier this month, but a disappointing performance against Everton has seen him drop back down the pecking order.
United will be aiming for three points after failing to win their last three league games. Monday’s defeat to the Toffees ended United’s longest unbeaten run under Amorim at five games.
The Red Devils enter the game in 12th place. A win could move them up to fifth place, but beating Crystal Palace will not be easy.
United have not won at Selhurst Park since 2020 and are without a win in their last four games against the Eagles. The last meeting between the sides took place at Old Trafford in February, which ended in a 2-0 defeat with Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring twice in the second half.
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