Lighting a fire under £72m star, finding the best role for Garnacho and the importance of one key defender… how Ruben Amorim can salvage Man United’s season in the Europa League

Ruben Amorim said it himself, he isn’t naive. He won’t need telling just how important the Europa League is to salvaging this most disastrous of seasons.

The cup competitions were all Manchester United had left to save a season where they have plunged to depths few could have imagined when riding the highs of the Sir Alex Ferguson glory years.

United are a far cry from those lofty heights now, true, but two cup games in five days represented a shot at salvation.

Step one: beat Fulham in the FA Cup. United fluffed that losing on penalties.

And so Amorim and his players’ season hinges on the Europa League and that starts in Spain on Thursday night in the first leg away to Real Sociedad.

Ninth in LaLiga, Imanol Alguacil’s side have been middling. But nobody fears Manchester United anymore. Why would you?

Defeat in the FA Cup to Fulham means the Europa League is now the only chance of a trophy

Many match-going fans are still firmly behind Amorim and grasp that it may need to get worse before it gets better.

Four of United’s over-30 players are out of contract at the end of season and money is likely to be forthcoming for Jadon Sancho (Chelsea), Marcus Rashford (Aston Villa) and Antony (Real Betis). New signings will be made in Amorim’s first full summer transfer window.

But there is a sense that crashing out at the first knockout hurdle in the Europa League risks the situation between now and the end of the campaign becoming toxic.

‘I think we can go game by game and we can win it,’ Amorim said of the Europa League after they booked their ticket to the knockout stage.

‘Then you have the responsibility, no matter the context, you are in Manchester United so you must fight for winning trophies. So we will see.

‘When you get to this stage of any competition, anything is possible and they can prove, on a good day, they can win against anybody. So we can think about that [winning the competition].’

Amorim hits all the right notes when he speaks, it’s just a shame his players more often than not struggle to back it up on the pitch.

Against Fulham on Sunday they coughed and spluttered their way through a dismal first half where they struggled to create a single ‘Big Chance’. They rallied back, and deserve some credit, but only results will do for United now.

Amorim has been very honest with fans but he knows he needs win to generate some belief

Rasmus Hojlund is on an 18-game streak without a goal and Thursday is huge for his season

One thing Amorim has been is consistent. Consistent that a storm would come. Consistent that a lot of work was needed on the training ground to get players comfortable with his system and philosophy. Consistent that he needs time to get his ideas across.

But in a week where they were in the FA Cup and Europa League, and are hosting Arsenal at Old Trafford on Sunday, it presented an opportunity to galvanise a fanbase becoming disillusioned with this team and this club.

Instead, the first bum note has been hit and apathy has kicked in even more so than it already had.

Amorim is partly trading on the currency that he steadfastly believes he can turn United back into a winning machine.

Fans want to believe that too, and a large number believe Amorim is the man to deliver it, but they also want to see green shoots of life between now and the end of the season.

It is why the Europa League is of paramount importance beyond just being a route into next season’s UEFA Champions League.

United struggled to start the Europa League campaign but won five games in a row to finish the league phase third.

‘We want to do something special in a special club – that was a key point,’ Amorim said on his arrival.

They will go to Spain without 17-year-old Chido Obi after he was left off their squad list

‘When Manchester United told me about their plans, you get excited. We know if the team plays well and wins games, everything looks so much better and the people really start to believe in the new stadium and new ideas.

‘It’s a real honour that I was the first choice to start that path.’

Amorim said as much in those initial comments: win and people find belief in the ideas. Lose and question marks swirl.

Mail Sport has previously reported how some players have privately expressed concerns about his three-at-the-back system; on a weekly basis plenty of fans raise similar concerns online and the discourse becomes the same back-and-forth because United have lost.

Real Sociedad have won just six of their 13 home games in LaLiga this season – 11th best in the league – and yet will be favourites against a United team that will be reliant on Rasmus Hojlund, who hasn’t scored in 18 straight games, because youngster Chido Obi isn’t registered.

Hojlund has done well in Europe this season. Five goals in eight games looks in stark contrast to his two goals in 22 games in the Premier League. He will need to have his best game in months if United are to score and play well in Spain.

There is also the conundrum of whether Alejandro Garnacho is more effective off the bench. Without him United look totally short of any direct attacking threat but he has looked so sharp when coming on against tired legs. His selection, whichever way Amorim decides, is crucial on Thursday. 

What has become increasingly apparent in recent weeks is that this summer is one of the most pivotal in recent memory for United as they look to fix one of the worst squads they have ever assembled.

But that does not mean the Europa League, or every remaining Premier League game is a free hit. The club’s record goalscorer Wayne Rooney said as much on Sunday.

‘I think he’ll get time but it’s not a free hit because he’ll expect more from Manchester United than what we’re seeing since he’s been in,’ Rooney told the BBC.

Amorim has the backing of many players and fans but patience is wearing thin for some now

‘He says winning the Premier League, how can they compete? To get further up the table, I think that’s the next step for them.’

Fans desperately want Amorim to succeed but he needs results to conjure up some belief in a fanbase that is becoming increasingly apathetic to a malaise that shows no signs of coming to an end.

They tripped at the first hurdle against Fulham, now they must drag themselves back up to clear the next one in Spain.

Fail to do so and this horror show of a season will sink to depths that even Amorim may not be able to talk his way around.