Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has expressed his desire to keep talented youngsters Kobbie Mainoo and Alejandro Garnacho despite rumours the duo could be sold to ease the club’s financial pressures.
United sit 13th in the Premier League and have won only four of Amorim’s 12 games in charge so far.
The club’s ability to hand the former Sporting Lisbon coach, who took charge in November, significant funds to rebuild in the transfer market is limited by profit and sustainability rules.
United lost $139m in the financial year to June 2024 – their fifth straight year in the red.
As academy graduates, any fee received for Mainoo or Garnacho would appear on the books as 100 percent profit.
Reports this week said United were therefore open to offers for the pair, as well as a number of other recently acquired signings such as Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte and Matthijs de Ligt.
“I really love my players. I want to keep my players, especially the talented ones,” Amorim said at his pre-match news conference before Sunday’s FA Cup trip to Arsenal.
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“It’s a special moment in this club, it’s a hard moment, but, of course, I’m really happy with Kobbie, he’s improving, and also with Garna.”
Amorim has previously admitted United’s recruitment must be better and he stressed the need to also improve the club’s academy to help save money in the transfer market.
“When we are targeting players, we need to be sure that they will cope with the demands,” he added.
“I also said we have to improve our academy, to bring young kids that fills the club in the right way, and also with those rules, we are able to do some business and have some money to invest in the team.
“Our idea is always to keep the best players and the players that we build for this club.
“We know the position that the club is in at the moment, but we will see. I’m very happy, I like our players, especially the guys from our academy.”
Another United academy graduate – Marcus Rashford – does seem set to leave Old Trafford this month.
The 27-year-old reportedly held talks with AC Milan this week, with other European clubs, including Borussia Dortmund, also interested.
Rashford has not featured in United’s last six games and Amorim refused to be drawn on whether he could return at the Emirates.
The Portuguese coach did confirm that second-string goalkeeper Altay Bayindir will feature ahead of Andre Onana despite his errors in a 4-3 League Cup quarterfinal exit to Tottenham last month.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, meantime, says he is impressed by the impact new boss Ruben Amorim has had on United, and expects it to be a beautiful game when the two teams face off in the third round of the cup.
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Arsenal handed Amorim his first loss as United manager in a 2-0 Premier League win last month. But United, 13th in the league, have shown sparks of potential in a 2-1 win at Manchester City and last weekend’s 2-2 draw at leaders Liverpool.
“Look at how they perform against the big teams … and the results they got,” Arteta told reporters on Friday.
“I think every manager, when he gets appointed, it’s for a reason. The reasons can be different. Sometimes it’s just to improve a football team … sometimes it’s to transform a football club. That’s a totally different dimension of a job.”
FA Cup holders United, however, lost four straight matches before Sunday’s draw, and have failed to keep a clean sheet in the last nine matches, while Arsenal had scored 13 goals in five matches before Tuesday’s 2-0 loss to Newcastle United in the League Cup.
Arteta said it was understandable that Amorim would need some time to get the best out of United.
“It’s tough because, obviously, you need time to implement your ideas, especially your way of playing, and explaining that. And when you have that many games, it’s tricky,” he said.
Arteta, however, said United had changed as a team since the two sides last clashed over five weeks ago.
“I’m expecting a few different things,” he added.
“It’s a beautiful game to play against a massive club and they will bring lots of supporters. The memory of winning something and sharing it with people is the ultimate goal.”
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