Dimitar Berbatov has warned Manchester United duo Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund are ‘lost’ and ‘wasting all their energy’ playing under Ruben Amorim.
United slumped to their 12th defeat in the Premier League this season at Tottenham on Sunday – a result which leaves them 15th in the league and 12 points above the relegation zone.
A series of devastating injury blows rocked the club last week with Amad Diallo, their standout player this season, set to miss the rest of the campaign.
It leaves Amorim with the attacking options of Zirkzee, Hojlund and Alejandro Garnacho – a trio woefully out of goalscoring form with just one between them in 2025.
Zirkzee started Sunday’s match in one of the two no10 roles behind the striker with Berbatov believing the Dutchman dropped far too deep, finding himself ‘out of position’ and ‘unable to use his best qualities’.
The former United striker also expressed concerns with how Hojlund has been utilised in Amorim’s 3-4-3 formation, fearing the Dane is being run into the ground in tracking back to cover gaps across the pitch.
‘You are being judged on how you play in that system and you are able to see you are not giving your best because either the system is not good for you or you play out of position,’ Berbatov told Premier League Productions.
‘We go back to Zirkzee playing out of position, running all over the place, looking lost so you cannot use his best qualities.
‘The same for Hojlund, he is wasting all his energy tracking back to cover the space because the fact the midfield is too far away from each other.
‘There are holes to cover then when you go forward, you have wasted all your energy.’
With morale desperately low at Old Trafford, Berbatov also suggested players, particularly senior figures around the team like captain Bruno Fernandes and Harry Maguire, may now start seeking out Amorim for answers.
‘If you play in a team like this of course it is bad for the mentality,’ Berbatov continued.
‘You start asking questions, maybe the more experienced players go to the coach and say coach, it is not working.’