RUBEN AMORIM should order Harry Amass back from his loan at Sheffield Wednesday in January.
On a day when Patrick Dorgu and Diogo Dalot struggles continued, Amass marked a professional milestone with his first senior goal.
Dorgu, arguably still wet behind the ears after turning 21 last week, was left exposed during Manchester United’s hectic 2-2 draw at bogey team Tottenham on Saturday.
But the truth is Liverpool’s Conor Bradley pocketed Vinicius Junior midweek at the age of 22. England’s latest full-back recruit Nico O’Reilly is 20 and Myles Lewis-Skelly has just turned 19. Like Amass, all three came through their academy set-ups.
Dorgu – 11 months into his Premier League career – was forced to start against Spurs amid Dalot’s worrisome displays this season.
While Amass is no Lewis-Skelly or Bradley, Amorim would benefit from having the teenager at his disposal. Hindsight would tell us that United mistakenly loaned out this homegrown player for the season.
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The current deal technically expires on January 5, with Wednesday set to request an extension.
Amass won the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award in May, after a breakthrough season that included a first-team debut on his 18th birthday in United’s 3-0 win at Leicester in March.
In April, he was the only player to emerge unscathed after making his full debut in United’s 4-1 defeat at Newcastle, shifting into midfield that day.
The traditional left-back, who arrived from Watford’s academy in 2023, also guided the Under-18s to three trophies last season.
Amass swapped one downtrodden club for a sinking ship when he was sent to Wednesday to gain regular first-team minutes on deadline day.
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He marked his 11th Championship start with a low-driven strike from outside the box an hour after Dorgu’s woes, before the Owls conceded another to lose 3-1 at Southampton.
Wednesday was always a risky move even before the 12-point deduction left them rock-bottom. But Amass was the main positive from the midweek draw at Norwich City too.
Amass is understood to be thoroughly enjoying his development at Hillsborough, so the expectation is the loan will end up being for the full campaign.
The teenager was named on the bench for the Europa League final against Spurs and he could have stayed at Old Trafford before Diego Leon impressed in pre-season.
United quickly discovered Leon, also 18, is too raw for first-team football and left him with the Under-21s.
Dragging Amass back would also save United money after Ineos agreed to cover every penny of the loanee’s wages and accommodation costs.
An Amass return would coincide with Dorgu’s first anniversary at the club after joining for £30million from Lecce in the last winter window.
The Dane was acquired to challenge Dalot and fill injury gaps, packaged as an exciting, versatile wing-back who would seamlessly slot into Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 system.
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Left-back has been a problem position since Tyrell Malacia’s well-documented injury issues were compounded by Luke Shaw’s famous one-year absence. Shaw has since moved into Amorim’s back three.
Lisandro Martinez’s return might signal Shaw out to left wing-back, but the latter’s history in the treatment room introduces an element of risk.
United will be linked with oven-ready left-back options next summer, but an early Amass homecoming would be most welcome.
