The Man United manager spoke about how he is going to use the match against Chelsea as some sort of rehearsal for the Europa League final against Spurs.
Amorim believes that this game is important for many reasons and is a fixture that he will be taking seriously.
The Portuguese wants his team to play the game with the intention of winning and that the feeling is the need to perform and win points in the league. He wants to see more concentration from his team because "these small details matter" as the United boss explains that his players didn't make the most of their opportunities whereas West Ham had one chance and scored their opener in last week's 2-0 loss.
With there being a five-day gap between tomorrow's match against Chelsea and the final in Spain, Amorim says that the best way to prepare for the final is to "play the game" in reference to tomorrow night. He also wants to clear up that regardless of his selection for Chelsea, it doesn't mean that certain players will or won't play next Wednesday.
"I'm just preparing the game for Chelsea."
Amorim confirms that he knows his team for tomorrow and that how his side perform at Stamford Bridge will be key for that final.
He also won't risk any players who are injury concerns ahead of the match in Spain. Leny Yoro is a player who will miss Chelsea but it's unknown whether he'll be ready for Spurs. After his injury against West Ham, Amorim appeared distraught at his defender having to come off. He says that his reaction wasn't just for that moment but also if this is to be a long injury that could cause the youngster issues for next season resulting in United having to act in the transfer window and look for a defender.
The United boss substituted Luke Shaw straight after taking Yoro off and admits that that was an insurance policy as he didn't want to risk another player getting injured. He adds that with a player who has been injury prone for a long time like both Shaw and Mason Mount, it's about managing their minutes so as to not rush them back and risk another injury.
Amorim talks about how it may sound silly to think that the performances in the league and Europa League aren't too dissimilar from yet looking at the league table, it would tell you otherwise. The United boss mentions how his team's xG has been bigger than some opponents but that lack of a killer edge has cost his side.
Final Thoughts
I think Amorim will be taking this game very seriously whereas the fans and others may think to rest and rotate key players. I already had this thought but with him saying that this game is like a final itself, I think he'll pick a strong side and go for it more than some might like.
That concentration is something that everyone has spoken about throughout the season with Manuel Ugarte not so long ago mentioning that as perhaps one of the reasons as to why United perform better in Europe than in the PL.
Tbh, I can't really remember the West Ham game (mainly because I don't want to) but there were definitely good scoring chances for us. This has been the case in several games this season but as in all of them, we fail to make the most of those chances. That focus is then lacking in defense which is why it's so simple for oppositions to score against us.
Talking about the time between the games, knowing his team for tomorrow already and how important it is for how we perform, makes me think even more that this match is really important not for itself but for that final. It really appears to be like a rehearsal.
It was frustrating to see Yoro come off and I was one of those that thought it was a mistake for the manager to pick him. He was already a concern given his history so why risk it? That's pretty much what he's saying with Shaw and Mount so why not do the same with Yoro?
I couldn't understand why he took off Shaw so early in the game but I do now, however, he is another player that you never know when he's going to fall even if he does have a lot of rest.
I agree that we are the same team in the two compeititions but for some reason we get the job done in Europe but not in the PL. I think we've played in the same manner and even made stupid mistakes in the Europa but we've managed to score the goals that got us the wins.
It does sound crazy to say that performances haven't been too bad when taking into account that we're in the final of one competition but close to the drop zone in the other.
But I do believe that this is true: we play the same.
Ruben Amorim looks at Man Utd's game against Chelsea as a potential rehearsal for their Europa League final against Spurs | Ruben Amorim: Image via Manchester United official X (@ManUtd)
Enzo Maresca needs to beat Man Utd in order to help secure top 5 place in Premier League | Enzo Maresca: Image credit: Getty Images via Goal