Gary Neville took aim at Ruben Amorim’s “bizarre” decision as Manchester United were held to a frustrating 1-1 draw by Wolverhampton Wanderers, awarding the visitors their third point of the campaign.
Man Utd stutter against struggling Wolves
Manchester United’s topsy-turvy 2025 ended with a poor 1-1 draw at home to rock-bottom Wolves as boss Rob Edwards collected a first point since taking charge.
Three weeks on from triumphing 4-1 at Molineux, Amorim’s side struggled in the absence of that night’s goalscorers Bruno Fernandes, Bryan Mbeumo and Mason Mount.
The Red Devils were without eight senior players in total but so too were embattled Wolves, who bounced back from Joshua Zirkzee’s opener through the man whose deflection sent the ball home.
Ladislav Krejci nodded the visitors level just before the break and proved enough to snap an 11-match losing run in the Premier League.
Wolves’ fans cheered on their team with gusto as their 19th match of a miserable campaign brought a third point and first positive result of Edwards’ reign.
As for United, boss Amorim’s side failed to build on their Boxing Day win against Newcastle and Patrick Dorgu saw a 90th-minute goal ruled out for offside. Little wonder boos greeted the final whistle.
It’s another step back for Amorim at Old Trafford, who will wonder where he will find his consistency after another frustrating display. Whether he will take the draw against Wolves as a sign that his 3-4-2-1 system is one to ditch remains to be seen. There’s no denying that United struggled back in their manager’s formation.
Gary Neville slams “bizarre” Amorim decision
Like many in Old Trafford, Neville was calling on Man United to attack at Old Trafford, especially when Amorim changed his system in the second-half. But that attack were forced to cope without Zirkzee in the second period after he was hooked at the break.
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Whilst it remains to be seen whether his substitution was an enforced one, Neville was quick to call it “bizarre” on commentary for Sky Sports as he watched another disappointing display.
The former Man United man said: “He’ll point to injuries and AFCON. But every team is in a similar situation. I’m not sure what happened with Zirkzee. If he’s not injured, it’s a bizarre substitution to make.”
|
Zirkzee vs Wolves |
Stats |
|---|---|
|
Minutes |
45 |
|
Goals |
1 |
|
Shots |
1 |
|
Touches |
23 |
The forward was certainly in clinical enough form to keep hold of his place at the break, especially when considering that Amorim was forced to turn towards the young Bendito Mantato deep into the second half.
If Zirkzee’s substitution was not down to an injury then more questions could arrive about his future. The forward has largely been out-of-favour this season and that is unlikely to change when Bryan Mbeumo returns to the side after AFCON.
If interest arrives, he could follow many others before him to leave the club not too long after initially completing a move.
