Patrick Dorgu has had a tough start to life at Manchester United. The 21-year-old was signed from Italian side Lecce for a reported fee of £25 million in January of 2025, the first signing of the Ruben Amorim era.
Dorgu was Amorim's man. He had the capability to play in Amorim's system as a wing-back, and was tipped to walk into the team immediately, possessing the right balance of skills to play left wing-back that his competitors like Luke Shaw or Diogo Dalot couldn't match.
It came as a huge shock when in November, almost a year into Dorgu's time at the club, Ruben Amorim ruthlessly and cruelly threw him under the bus in a press conference.
"You can feel the anxiety every time Patrick touches the ball," Amorim said in a press conference, "I can feel the anxiety". Such a brutal attack on a young player became a common criticism of Amorim's media conduct, but directed at a player Amorim had signed, who was perhaps out of form but still a piece of United's rotation, resembled a betrayal more than constructive criticism.
To his credit, Dorgu seemed to take his manager's scathing critique well. Dorgu reportedly put in extra work at the training ground in the weeks since Amorim's comments, and has managed to secure himself a consistent place in the side.
Dorgu has played the full 90 minutes in United's past seven games, and also got himself four goal involvements in that time. He's gone from his manager's scapegoat to a reliable starter in a matter of months. He was also deployed in different positions and showcased his versatility, pulling shifts at left wing-back, attacking midfielder, right midfield, and left winger in the games since Christmas.
Dorgu has also benefitted greatly from the removal of Ruben Amorim as head coach. Dorgu was brought in with Amorim's wing-back heavy system in mind, but has surprisingly thrived outside of the role he was explicitly signed for.
Dorgu played as a left-winger in the games against Burnley and Manchester City, and assisted Benjamin Šeško with a pinpoint cross against Burnley, and netted a tidy goal in the Manchester derby.
After the Manchester City game, Dorgu was seen leaving the stadium with his family, when his mother was seen encouraging him to go over and take photos with some of the gathered United fans, which he then sheepishly did. It's good to see Dorgu starting to form a relationship with the fans and the club after a difficult start to life at Old Trafford.
It's easy to forget how young Dorgu is. Amorim's system forced the ball to him consistently, putting undue pressure on him to create. He is still only 21 years old, younger than Amad,
Benjamin Šeško and even some academy players like Toby Collyer.
Amorim's attack could've derailed Patrick Dorgu's entire career. What it did was make him stronger. Dorgu didn't deserve that level of pressure, but when he did receive it, it made him stronger. He is the kind of player who belongs at Man United, and he's only getting started.