Ruben Amorim said Manchester United’s progress to the Europa League last 16 with a 2-0 win over Romanian side FCSB will be crucial to his bid to revitalise his troubled team.
Amorim’s men recovered from a patchy first half in Bucharest to secure the top-eight finish that guaranteed automatic qualification for the last 16 on Thursday.
Diogo Dalot broke the deadlock on the hour with a close-range finish from Kobbie Mainoo’s cross and the provider turned scorer eight minutes later as the England midfielder tucked away Alejandro Garnacho’s pass.
After beating Rangers and Fulham in their previous two games, United recorded three consecutive wins in all competitions for the first time this season.
United came third in the league phase of the Europa League after going unbeaten in their eight matches.
Avoiding the play-off round — for the teams who finished ninth to 24th — is a major boost for Amorim, who will use the free time to drill his tactics and philosophy on the training ground.
“That is really important for us to have time to train and have the connection between everybody, even the staff,” he said.
“In training we go to the pitch and get to know each other in the right environment. You can work on your ideas and then have time to focus on the opponent.
“That is the biggest thing. More than the win is to have time to train and have time to recover the players.”
‘We have to score more’
Having bemoaned the lack of training opportunities because of United’s hectic schedule since his arrival from Sporting Lisbon in November, Amorim is relishing the chance to get down to work.
He highlighted his decision to give Mainoo a more attacking midfield role, instead of his usual holding position, as evidence that he can improve United’s stars once he gets time to understand their strengths.
A deep run in the Europa League would be a boost to Amorim as he bids to convince United’s players and fans that he is the man to end their long spell as underachievers in the Premier League and Europe.
“We controlled the game, but we have to score more goals because we had the opportunities. The opponent is not with all due respect the same level as the Premier League,” Amorim said.
“We want to improve a lot with the way we play. ”
United will face Real Sociedad, Galatasaray, AZ Alkmaar or FC Midtjylland in the last 16 in March.
And Amorim believes they are capable of lifting the trophy in Bilbao in May.
“You have the responsibility, you are in Manchester United, so you must fight for winning trophies,” he said.
