Ruben Amorim is celebrating his biggest win since arriving at Manchester United – with perhaps a hint of relief after making the most "brutal" call of his brief reign so far.
The Portuguese dropped forwards Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho for "selection" reasons for Sunday's match at Manchester City and his gamble paid off with a dramatic 2-1 win, thanks to late goals from Bruno Fernandes and Amad Diallo.
Amorim has shown he is prepared to speak bluntly about the huge task facing him at a dysfunctional Old Trafford since he replaced the sacked Erik ten Hag last month.
Now he has shown he is prepared to walk the walk as well as talk the talk as he battles to force through a cultural and tactical reboot at the club, who are 13th in the Premier League table.
The former Sporting Lisbon boss has shown a willingness to rotate his men, unafraid to leave out big names.
But on Sunday Rashford and Garnacho – two of United's most potent attackers – were omitted from the squad entirely as Amorim showed his teeth.
Amorim said it was a "selection" issue ahead of the game at the Etihad, with both players training at United's training ground on Sunday morning.
Afterwards, he stressed it was not a disciplinary issue, though he did allude to standards he expects.
"For me what is important is the performance in training, the performance in game, the way you dress, the way you eat, the way you engage with teammates and push teammates," he said.
"Everything is important in our context, the beginning of something when we want to change a lot of things, when people in our club are losing their jobs. We have to put our standards really high, and for that they have to fight for their place in their team.
"Today we proved we can leave anybody out of the squad and you can manage to win if you play together."
CLEAN SLATE
Amorim does not appear to be a man who holds grudges, saying the slate would be wiped clean ahead of United's next game, which is against Tottenham in the League Cup quarterfinals on Thursday.
"Next week, next game, new life and they are fighting for the places," he said.
Rashford posted a picture on social media after United celebrated their winner accompanied by a caption saying "Yesssssssss! Love it lads," with two heart emojis, while Garnacho stayed silent.
But speculation will continue over the future of 27-year-old Rashford, who has struggled for consistency since scoring 30 goals in the 2022/23 season.
It is not a new situation for the England forward, who has been punished in the past for disciplinary lapses, including over-sleeping.
Garnacho, just 20, is seen as one of United's crown jewels but has also been inconsistent this season, pointedly refusing to celebrate a goal against Leicester, with Fernandes suggesting at the time that the Argentina international believes some fans have lost faith in him.
Former United captain Gary Neville, now a Sky Sports pundit, backed Amorim after Sunday's "brutal" call, criticising the work ethic of both players.
"They've both been poor on the pitch, that's a fact," he said on The Gary Neville Podcast.
"And Amorim said the selection issue was down to performance and engagement with teammates. That means if they've not been good in the group. That's why they weren't here.
"What he's done is made a bold call. What he has to do is shake this club to its core."
Neville said Amorim must get a group of players who can fit into his preferred 3-4-3 formation.
"He needs to make sure he's brutal with it, really brutal. And he's been brutal today," he said.
Roy Keane, another former United captain turned TV pundit, told Sky Sports that Amorim was putting down a "marker".
"It's a big talking point because he's obviously seen things he doesn't like," he said. "But for us it's not a big surprise because both players have been poor and he has said enough is enough.
"He is putting a marker down. Let's see how they react to it."