Amorim explains bizarre decision to throw Harry Maguire into attack against Forest

Ruben Amorim has defended his eyebrow-raising choice to thrust defender Harry Maguire into a makeshift striker role during the dying moments of their 1-0 loss to Nottingham Forest.

Trailing since Anthony Elanga’s fifth-minute solo stunner against his old club, United were desperate for a spark. With the clock ticking down, Amorim subbed on Maguire in the 88th minute, and the centre-back nearly repaid the faith—only for Murillo to clear his effort off the line, sealing Forest’s historic league double over United, their first since 1991-92.

Manchester United’s beleaguered head coach in his post-match press conference unpacked the logic behind the gamble, spotlighting United’s chronic inability to convert chances.

“In the end of the game, when the opponent is protecting the box, they are comfortable,” he said. “We can reach the final third but we have to put the ball into the box, as it is hard to make the combinations.

"Harry Maguire, when he is attacking set pieces, is maybe the best player in the team.” He argued that in the penalty area, roles blur: “You are not a defender, you are a striker.”

Maguire’s aerial prowess, honed over years of towering over defenses, made him a last-ditch weapon, especially after United’s 23 shots—six on target—barely troubled Forest’s Matz Sels until that late flurry.

The decision reflects deeper attacking woes. Amorim started Joshua Zirkzee up top, swapped him for Rasmus Hojlund at half-time, and later pulled Zirkzee entirely, yet the goals wouldn’t come.

“That is clear,” he conceded when grilled on the drought. With United stuck in 13th and the Manchester Derby looming on April 6, Maguire’s cameo—fresh off a February calf injury—could signal a tactical shift.

Posts on X show fans split: some laud the creativity, others mock the desperation. For Amorim, it’s a stark admission of a squad misfiring, pinning hopes on a defender to salvage a season slipping away.