Sometimes, managers resort to desperate measures to make a point to the people who use them.
When Ruben Amorim felt that there was a real danger that Marcus Rashford could still be a Manchester United player after he closed the January transfer window, he declared that he would prefer to choose his 63 -year -old goalkeeper Jorge Vital to go back and remember The exiled star of England.
Rashford was already halfway from the M6 to Aston Villa when Amorim revealed his team against Crystal Palace at 12.45 pm on Sunday, leaving Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee in the bank and selecting midfielder Kobbie Mainoo as a central striker.
So, was I sending an equally marked message to the Old Trafford hierarchy before the deadline? And who could blame him if he did?
When Amorim took the work of United in November, he left one of the most popular in European football in Sporting Lisbon in Viktor Gyokeres. The Swedish has scored 34 goals this season.
In United, Amorim has inherited two strikers in Hojlund and Zirkzee, who have scored 11 among them despite costing about £ 110 million.
Ruben Amorim has refused to buy in panic for Manchester United during the January window
Amorim has inherited two strikers in Hojlund and Zirkzee who have scored 11 among them
There are hope that Hojlund or Zirkzee can flourish in a forward like Viktor Gyokes (right)
Worse, the possibilities of reinforcing his strike in the winter window were scarce from the beginning, with United to be financially disciplined after signing the left wing Patrick Dorgu de Lecce for £ 29m and the young defender of Arsenal Ayden Heave 1.5 Metro.
The club has reduced its salary bill considerably by downloading to Rashford and Antony on loan, but they are still sailing near the wind under the gains and sustainability rules.
Having signed the strikers who took Weghortst and Odion Ighalo in the previous January windows, United was reluctant to make any panic movement before the deadline last night that could affect their plans or budget in the summer.
Despite the speculation about a movement for the Bayern Munich striker, Mathys Tel, it is understood that United was not prepared to take expensive risks with high loan rates for unproven young players.
A 2-0 defeat by the surprising selection of the Palace and Amorim team was not going to change those plans unless it was an agreement in process for the summer that could have submitted six months.
Amorim left his Mainoo experiment when he brought Hojlund and Zirkzee in the 70th minute on Sunday, but United was already behind a goal from Jean-Philippe Mateta and the striker then added a second.
Mateta is an example of what is needed to become a Premier League striker. After joining Palace in January four years ago, he scored only once. In the next two seasons, only seven more goals in the League followed.
But there has been a constant improvement and after scoring 16 last season, the French orthopedic device in Old Trafford led him to double figures again.
Amorim experienced with Kobbie Mainoo playing as a striker against Crystal Palace
Having signed the strikers Odion Ighalo in previous windows, United was reluctant to panic
The players have long become goals established at this level. But that is what United needed when they signed Hojlund for £ 72 million atalanta in the summer of 2023 and Zirkzee of Bologna for £ 36.5 million last July.
It is well known that the manager Erik Ten -Hag wanted Harry Kane, and that the striker favored a transfer to United. Soccer director John Murtough also pressed for the agreement.
But former executive president Richard Arnold and the Glazer family felt that the £ 100 million rate and Kane's salaries were too much for a player of his age with little resale value, and there were also reservations about persuading the head of Tottenham, Daniel Levy, to sell to a rival of the main league. .
A rate with Atalanta for Hojlund and Kane was agreed to Bayern Munich, where he added to his 213 goals of the Premier League for the Spurs by scoring 70 more in less than two seasons in Germany.
It was said that Ten Hag understood that the club had signed a young striker and wanted a more experienced partner for Hojlund, but that never materialized.
The Dane scored an impressive 16 goals, including 10 in the Premier League, but has found it more difficult in its second season and is in a sterile race of 13 games.
When United returned to the transfers market for another striker last summer, once again they overlooked the top -level goals tested as Ivan Toney and
Danny Welbeck in favor of Zirkzee. Like Hojlund, the Dutchman was an exciting prospect that arrived after a successful season with Bologna. Despite scoring the winner in his debut against Fulham, the 23 -year -old has fought and reached a low point when fans celebrated his early substitution against Newcastle at the end of December.
It is well known that Erik Ten Hag wanted Harry Kane, and that he favored a transfer to United
The hope is that Hojlund or Zirkzee could advance in a Gyokeres, who caught fire in love in Sporting after fighting to reach the highest level in English football with Brighton, Swansea and Coventry.
But time is not a product that is granted to many coaches, and Amorim can still try to sign the Gyokeres in the summer.
Not that would be surprising if United does not start next season with a more experienced striker who leads the line. Lessons have been learned.
“I know what the team needs,” Amorim said Sunday. 'We talk about that all the time and need to improve our performance in all aspects, especially in scoring goals. We are trying to improve the team without making the mistakes of the past.