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Amad has sent an indirect plea to Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim amid an attack-focused start to the summer transfer window. Amorim has already recruited Wolves forward Matheus Cunha in a £62.5million deal, and Bryan Mbeumo is next on the Portuguese tactician’s wish list.
United are locked in negotiations with Brentford after an unsuccessful initial bid of £45million plus £10m in add-ons earlier this month. The Bees are holding out for a guaranteed package worth £60m, but the 25-year-old has reportedly already approved a switch and reached a verbal agreement. Should Mbeumo join Cunha through the arrivals suite at Old Trafford, questions will naturally arise about Amad’s role next season.
The 22-year-old was one of very few shining lights in a dark 2024/25 campaign for United, registering 11 goals and 10 assists in 43 appearances across all competitions.
Amad also signed a new long-term contract in M16 and appears primed to play a pivotal role in Amorim’s mammoth rebuild.
However, United will not be splashing a potential combined £122.5m on Cunha and Mbeumo to use either as an impact substitute.
It is expected that both are arriving to start as the two attacking midfield-winger hybrids in Amorim’s 3-4-3 system.
And the 40-year-old reportedly also plans to recruit a striker once he has boosted his limited budget with player sales.
Amad featured at right-wing-back multiple times after Amorim landed in Manchester and could be set for a permanent tenancy in the position next term.
Yet, during United’s 2025/26 home kit launch, the Ivory Coast international made it clear that he viewed himself as an attacking player.
When asked what he thought of the new strip, Amad replied: “Top, top, top. I have to score a hat-trick next season with this one.”
Amad notched up his first hat-trick for United in January, scoring three late goals to prevent a humiliating home defeat to Southampton.
While the wing-backs are handed attacking freedom in Amorim’s system, it would require a magical performance to contribute a trifecta of strikes.
With United struggling in the striker market – having been rejected by Liam Delap and Viktor Gyokeres – it’s not out of the question that one of Cunha or Mbeumo will be used centrally next term.
That would offer Amad the opportunity to operate in his preferred advanced position, while Bruno Fernandes, Mason Mount and Kobbie Mainoo can also fill the gap.
But Amorim’s early business indicates that he views Amad as a wing-back in the long run, which could reap rich rewards or stifle the development of one of United’s most exciting stars.
