A long-serving Manchester United star who continues to be a lightning rod for criticism amongst the fanbase will be \u201cshown the door\u201d if he doesn\u2019t improve and quickly, according to a top source.<\/p>\n
Ruben Amorim\u2019s 3-4-2-1 formation is here to stay, irrespective of whether the fans or even certain players in United\u2019s squad like it or not.<\/p>\n
The shift in formation has benefitted some and hindered others. Harry Maguire\u2019s lack of pace can be covered up to a degree in a back three, for example, though Diogo Dalot<\/a> lacks a natural position.<\/p>\n The Portugal international can play right-back or left-back, but isn\u2019t at his best as a wide centre-back or wing-back.<\/p>\n Unfortunately for Dalot, it\u2019s on the edge of a back three or as a wing-back where he must play if he\u2019s to survive in Amorim\u2019s world at Old Trafford.<\/p>\n Dalot is among United\u2019s longest-serving stars having been on the books since 2018, yet his performance levels have been a sore spot for many a United fan for a long time.<\/p>\n And according to Andy Mitten \u2013 who is among the most respected sources on all things Man Utd<\/a> \u2013 Dalot must improve or he will be turfed out before long.<\/p>\n \u201cI think he\u2019s getting more heat than any Man Utd player at the moment,\u201d said Mitten on the Talk of the Devils<\/a> podcast.<\/p>\n \u201cSome fans always want a scapegoat, and yet when I say that, I know that people will be saying \u2018we\u2019re criticising him because he\u2019s been the poorest player.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cI think he was the poorest player [against Nottingham Forest] at the weekend. The mitigation is he\u2019s not playing in his strongest position and there\u2019s been times where he\u2019s been quite an important player for Man Utd.<\/p>\n \u201cLook, he\u2019s not the best player in the world in his position\u2026 I do think eventually it will be an area that United do strengthen.<\/p>\n \u201cBut this is where the team and the club are right now. He\u2019s a top professional, he cannot be faulted for that. But fans also know what they\u2019re seeing and when you watch him as he played against Forest at the weekend it wasn\u2019t great.<\/p>\n \u201cJust looking at the notes about I made from the match about him, I said that he was probably\u2026 well, he was definitely Manchester United\u2019s poorest player.\u201d<\/p>\n Mitten concluded: \u201cI\u2019m sounding hesitant here because he is underperforming, and he either starts performing, or he gets put back into a more natural position for him, or he\u2019s shown the door further down the line.\u201d<\/p>\n Man Utd will be forced to select Diogo Dalot<\/strong><\/p>\n The conversation about Dalot stemmed from a discussion about how Man Utd will manage during the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations tournament.<\/p>\n The competition runs from December 21 to January 18 and United are primed to be without Noussair Mazraoui (Morocco), Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast) and Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon).<\/p>\n Amad has been starting games at right wing-back of late, which is also a position Mazraoui can cover. The Moroccan is also more than capable of playing as the right-sided centre-back.<\/p>\n But with Mazraoui and Amad both due a leave of absence, Mitten\u2019s co-host, Carl Anka, suggested Amorim\u2019s solution will be to deploy Dalot at right wing-back.<\/p>\n If the Portuguese fails to up his game at a time when he\u2019s earning regular starts, the heat really will be on the 26-year-old.<\/p>\n Latest Man Utd news \u2013 Midfield signing ramping up<\/strong><\/p>\n In other news, Mitten has also insisted Man Utd will make TWO signings in central midfield in 2026.<\/p>\n First up is expected to be Nottingham Forest\u2019s Elliot Anderson who Mitten declared is \u201cwell-positioned\u201d to make the move to Old Trafford<\/a>.<\/p>\n That comes after TEAMtalk exclusively revealed United are already preparing a tempting bid for Anderson in January<\/a>.<\/p>\n