Amad Diallo Opens Up on Man Utd ‘Frustrations’ | OneFootball

Manchester United forward Amad Diallo has discussed how the lack of trust from former manager Erik ten Hag left him “a little bit frustrated” and revealed his lofty ambitions with Ruben Amorim’s faith to lean upon.

Amad was signed by United during Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s reign back in January 2021. After two loan spells at Rangers and Sunderland, the spindly left-footer struggled to establish himself as a first-team regular under Ten Hag.

The former Atalanta forward started just seven of the 26 Premier League games he was available for while the Dutch coach was at the helm. Amorim, by contrast, named Amad in 12 of his first 13 top-flight starting XIs after taking over in November before an ankle injury threatened to prematurely end his campaign.

Ten Hag saw Amad average a goal or an assist every 212 minutes—that rate has almost doubled under Amorim.

When asked the factor behind this blistering turnaround, United’s newly potent forward offered a simple explanation: “game time”.

Amad is grateful for Amorim‘s impact. / IMAGO/Every Second Media

“Since I got that game time, I showed everyone I can play for this club,” the Ivory Coast international proudly told The Telegraph. “That was the only thing I didn’t have at the beginning when I arrived here. Now I have a manager who believes in me, who trusts me, so I’m grateful for everything he did for me. Now it’s for me to play everything on the pitch.”

“You have a little bit of frustration,” Amad continued. “But I think now it’s because the manager believes in me. He believes in my potential. I’m trying to repay his confidence every time I’m on the pitch.”

Beyond simply giving him a platform to shine, United’s second-top scorer credited Amorim with improving specific aspects of his game. “I think honestly, I wasn’t like this before,” he admitted. “It’s the things I learnt and I want to continue like this.”

Despite his limited opportunities under Ten Hag, Amad was keen to highlight the positive impact he still had: “Erik helped me a lot. He was giving me a lot of advice, even when I wasn’t playing. He was telling me to train very hard every time.”

Whatever doubts his various managers have had in his talent over the years, Amad certainly strikes a confident tone. “I think I believe in my potential,” he insisted. “I believe I can be one of the best in the world. I just have to give my best every game. That’s it. But I believe in my potential.”

That quest for international stardom continues in Wednesday’s Europa League final against Tottenham Hotspur.