Man Utd: Replacing Fernandes not ‘impossible’ as rotten Mainoo luck creates England narrative

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim says Bruno Fernandes is “impossible to replace” but he has to find a way against Newcastle on Boxing Day.

Fernandes was brought off at half-time in Sunday’s Premier League match at Aston Villa after suffering a muscle injury.

The Portugal international has only missed two club matches through injury in his professional career, but is set to be absent for around a month.

It’s a huge blow for United , who only know life with their captain in the starting XI. It will be interesting to see how they cope without him. They will either crumble, or, for no reason other than football being very weird at times, look significantly better.

Kobbie Mainoo is the natural choice to replace Fernandes, but he is also injured.

It’s typical of the young midfielder’s season, which has been stop-start and frustrating. Mainoo knows he is competing against Fernandes for a starting spot rather than alongside him.

Dislodging the United skipper is an impossible task and his injury should have presented the perfect opportunity for Mainoo to finally stake his claim under Amorim.

Instead, the United boss is without both and could move Mason Mount back into midfield to play alongside Casemiro , although centre-back Lisandro Martinez came off the bench to feature there at Villa Park.

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Amorim has to find a solution, but you can’t blame him for being a little tentative.

Speaking during his pre-match press conference on Wednesday, Amorim said: “It’s impossible to replace Bruno. But I said that this morning to the team that we need to take the good thing, if there is a good thing in that, and a lot of people need to step up.

“It’s not just the creation. On every set-piece, he is the guy organising the team and that is a good opportunity for everyone to step up and realise we can’t rely on one player for everything.

“Sometimes we rely on Bruno for the organisation and creation. We lost Bruno, Bryan [Mbeumo] and Amad [Diallo] on set-pieces so this is massive for the team.

“This is a good chance for Lucha [Lisandro Martinez], Luke Shaw and all of these guys to step up and have more leaders in the group.”

Young midfielder Jack Fletcher, son of United hero Darren, came off the bench against Villa and is one of the options Amorim is considering.

“We have other players. We maybe need to see different ways of playing,” he said.

“I think Jack Fletcher did a very good job and that’s why, when we have this opportunity, we need to give space to guys like Jack and others. We will find solutions to play.

“I am confident we can win any game. We have some problems, but I believe in the team, even without many players at this moment. It is more difficult, but I trust my players. If we are really focused on the game, we can win.”

So, who replaces Fernandes in the United midfield?

A Casemiro and Manuel Ugarte pairing seriously lacks creativity and, in the latter’s case, quality.

Ugarte is short on confidence and has struggled every time he has taken to the pitch this season, with most of his appearances coming from the bench.

He started against Villa last weekend and could start again if Amorim believes continuity is required to restore his form.

But with Newcastle looking far less combative and physical in midfield, there is little need to pair the two South Americans.

Fletcher is an option, but it will likely be Mount who starts alongside Casemiro , who returns from suspension to face the Magpies.

Mount has impressed in recent weeks in a more advanced role , but he is perfectly capable of dropping deeper to perform a similar function to Fernandes.