Manchester United go into the crucial second leg against Athletic Club off the back of a defeat at Brentford.
Ruben Amorim enjoyed one of his finest nights as Manchester United boss on Thursday.
United beat Athletic Club 3-0 and effectively put one foot in the Europa League final, potentially against Tottenham Hotspur.
Amorim therefore rang the changes against Brentford, with United facing Athletic again this Thursday night.
United were beaten 4-3 at Brentford, despite taking the lead through Mason Mount.
The Bees ran riot to go 4-1 up before Alejandro Garnacho and Amad Diallo pulled goals back for United.
Photo by Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty ImagesRuben Amorim on Mason Mount
There weren’t many bright spots from this United defeat, especially with Matthijs de Ligt picking up another injury.
Amorim is concerned about De Ligt’s injury but must be pleased with how Mount played in his fifth Premier League start of the season.
Mount arrived in the six-yard box to slot home Garnacho’s cross, showing off his goal threat.
We know Mount is a quality player, but his injury record since joining United has been the biggest problem.
Amorim has now told United’s official website that he loved Mount’s run into the box as much as the finish.
Amorim feels Mount is ‘really intelligent’ and offers a threat in terms of crashing into the box from a midfield position.
The United boss hailed Mount for training ‘really hard’, and admitted that he actually tried to hold him back from training more.
Mount’s injury record is no doubt in the back of Amorim’s mind, but he is ‘really happy’ with where Mount is at right now.
“It’s not just the finish, it’s the position that he has on the pitch,” said Amorim.
“He’s like a third midfielder that can reach the box, he’s really intelligent, so he’s getting there. And he trains really hard. Sometimes I have to push him back and to take him off the pitch because he wants to do so much more.
‘We are taking care of him, he wants to play more minutes, but the minutes were controlled. I’m really happy with him,” he added.
Mount’s stats below, provided by Sofascore, show that he not only possessed a threat in the final third but also contributed off the ball.
Mount recorded two tackles, three duels won and four ball recoveries, showing both sides of his game in United’s defeat.
.Mason Mount run would provide great boost
United’s sole focus right now is on the Europa League.
Amorim may have played down the Europa League’s importance earlier this year, but he now understands that winning this competition would be enormous.
Moving past Athletic is priority number one, but Amorim and United fans would love to see Mount find a run of form.
United signed Mount from Chelsea in 2023, but the attacking midfielder has struggled to take on a key role.
Injuries have plagued Mount and Sunday’s goal was a reminder of the ability he possesses in the final third.
Building Mount up in terms of fitness and confidence would be huge ahead of preseason, with Mount hopefully able to kick on and finally become a United star next season.