Ex-Manchester United and England midfielder Paul Scholes has now attempted to explain Ruben Amorim’s hardline stance around one first-team star at Old Trafford.
After a rocky start to the 2025–26 Premier League season at Old Trafford, Ruben Amorim has managed to weather an early storm (for the time being).
After Manchester United’s disastrous exit from the Carabao Cup, the 40-year-old manager of the team found himself under mounting criticism.
In the second-round match, Grimsby Town hosted United at Blundell Park, where the League Two team shocked the Red Devils with a Carabao Cup upset.
Prior to the September international break, United was able to recover from their penalty shootout loss to Grimsby Town last Wednesday.
United welcomed Burnley to Old Trafford in the Premier League and the Red Devils picked up their first win in the 2025-26 campaign with a 3-2 victory last Saturday.
Paul Scholes tries to explain why Ruben Amorim is snubbing midfielder Manuel Ugarte at Man Utd for the starting XI
Manchester United’s tactical scheme under manager Ruben Amorim has once again drawn criticism, particularly for the team’s early midfield combination.
Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes have been the preferred two-man midfield pivot for the former Sporting CP head coach, with Fernandes playing a deeper role this season.
However, Amorim has only relied on Kobbie Mainoo and Manuel Ugarte for increasingly infrequent outings because United has occasionally found their midfield overpowered.
Paul Scholes, speaking on The Overlap, is certain that Amorim, the manager of United, is unable to choose the ideal midfield combination from the options available to him.
Scholes would also reaffirm the 50-year-old former United midfielder’s belief that Amorim “probably doesn’t like” utilizing Manuel Ugarte.
“Now, I think he’s got four or five midfield players in there and he wants to play two of them,” Scholes said.
“He can’t get it right. He can’t get the combination right. Ugarte and Mainoo, he doesn’t like; Casemiro and Mainoo, he doesn’t like.
“Casemiro-Fernandes is the one he seems to be going for a lot, but that isn’t going to win you a Premier League [title].”
The United legend added: “He probably doesn’t like Ugarte, absolutely.”
The Manuel Ugarte puzzle remains on the mind of Man Utd fans amid Ruben Amorim’s midfield pairings
The 24-year-old defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte, who played for Sporting CP under Amorim, is having trouble reestablishing himself under the United manager.
The Uruguayan midfielder has slipped in the United hierarchy and is occasionally chosen as an alternative to Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes.
In United’s victory over Burnley, Ugarte, who has appeared in three of the first four games of the season across all competitions, was not deployed as a substitute.
The Uruguayan international has only made one appearance for United, against Grimsby Town, and Amorim substituted defender Matthijs de Ligt for him at halftime.
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