Ruben Amorim defends Patrick Dorgu decision after scathing Roy Keane review | OneFootball

Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim defended his decision to play the club's new left-footed defender Patrick Dorgu at right wing-back, a tactical call which received a typically blunt appraisal from former Red Devils skipper Roy Keane.

The February signing from Lecce was billed as the solution to United's problems at left wing-back. This stance was solidified by the subsequent departure of left-back Tyrell Malacia on deadline day.

However, Dorgu lined up for Friday night's FA Cup fourth-round tie against Leicester City on the right-hand side of United's 3-4-2-1. The relegation-battling visitors took a deserved first-half lead after Bilal El Khannouss ferreted down Dorgu's wing.

Amorim hooked his new recruit during the half-time interval, introducing Alejandro Garnacho who helped inspired United's controversial comeback.

Patrick Dorgu didn't win a single tackle during his 45 minutes on the pitch for Man Utd / Visionhaus/GettyImages

When reflecting on a first 45 minutes which produced zero shots on target for the hosts, Keane tore into his former team. "There is a lack of belief, lack of confidence," he said in his role as an ITV pundit. "They've brought new players in, you're thinking he's [Dorgu] going to play in his position and he's playing right wing-back.

"You think, is that unfair on players? And you look at the urgency for the [Leicester] goal, it's given away cheaply, people not staying with their runners. I just look at it from United's point of view and think, my goodness, is this what it's come to?"

Amorim spent much of the opening 45 minutes feverishly feeding his £29m recruit instructions. "I was trying to help Dorgu to manage the game," the Portuguese boss explained. "He's had three training sessions so it was hard for him."

When pushed on Dorgu's positioning, Amorim reasoned: "He played a lot of times for Lecce on the right and the left. That's one of the characteristics we pay a lot of attention to. He was a little bit anxious with the first touch of the ball. This is a different league for him, different speed of the game but he did well.

"He has pace, he has strength and he is going to improve a lot. We as a team need to play better to help the new guy perform at the right level.

"If you have seen the history of Dorgu for his last team he played a lot of games on the right and we have to have wingers who can play both sides like [Diogo] Dalot. So I think it is a really important thing because sometimes you need a left foot on the right side to come in and connect in a different way and sometimes you need a right foot to connect and cross more balls."