Gary Neville has warned Ruben Amorim against playing Kobbie Mainoo in a false-nine role, insisting that Manchester United need a proven presence up top.

Neville was speaking on Sky Sports following Chelsea's 2-1 Premier League win over West Ham, when he was asked about the Red Devils' 2-0 loss to Crystal Palace on Sunday. During that game at Old Trafford, Amorim deployed Mainoo through the middle while leaving strikers Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund on the bench - a move that Neville thought to be either experimental or down to a dislike towards his strike force.

And while there are some benefits to using a false-nine system, Neville ultimately explained that it was far from the solution to United's woes. He said: "When I saw Kobbie Mainoo up front yesterday, I thought Fernandes was going to play in that position or something. [Alejandro] Garnacho might play up front and [Bruno] Fernandes to the right.

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"When I saw Kobbie Mainoo as a centre forward or dropping in, I thought, 'It's okay that. You'll get control of the game'. A little bit of what I've talked about here, you can get decent football and it can con you. It can kid you this decent football, where you're watching nice passes outside of the box and up to the final third.

"It's about putting the ball in the back of the net. It's about getting bodies in the box, it's about getting bodies across defenders and making sure that you're really creating chances. And that's not going to happen that much. Everything has to be perfect with Kobbie Mainoo up front, and Garnacho and Amad.

"You've got three quite lightweight players, really talented, good players. But everything has to be absolutely perfect, and I'm just thinking about it from a Crystal Palace point of view if I'm a defender. I'm thinking, 'I fancy this, I can out-muscle these'. They're sharp but they're not rapid quick.

"There's no real goal scorers there amongst them, I know they can chip in. And I'm thinking, 'We've got a chance here'. So I'm seeing that team sheet and I'm thinking, 'We've got a chance'." However, Neville also added that the addition of Zirkzee or Hojlund may have given Palace something to think about as a more physical presence up top.

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He continued: "Now, I'm not saying that if they seen Hojlund up front, all of a sudden they'll be starting to panic, but they'll be thinking, 'At least they've got a physical presence, they've got a battle'. Zirkzee's a big lad. They're brilliant these players. I just felt that when I saw that team yesterday, I thought if I was Crystal Palace I'd be fancying it.

"And I was speaking to Lee Dixon in the truck watching it and I'd be like, 'I'd be surprised if Crystal Palace don't score a couple of goals, and I can't see how United are going to score. Where's it going to come from?'." Neville also noted how changes will need to be made should United hope to turn their fortunes around, explaining how Mainoo's selection in an unfamiliar position repeated that of Christian Eriksen and Casemiro.

He continued: "You know, the Casemiro and [Christian] Eriksen one the other week...Zirkzee after 30 minutes and he had to change that midfield. He brought Mainoo on. There's sometimes when you see a team, it doesn't look right. If it doesn't look right, it quite often isn't right and it doesn't surprise you."

Zirkzee was one of Erik ten Hag's marquee signings over the summer, arriving at Old Trafford in a £35.8million transfer from Bologna. However, new boss Amorim is yet to get the best out of the forward. The 23-year-old has managed just three goals in 24 Premier League appearances since his arrival.

Meanwhile, Hojlund has fared even worse - netting just twice in 19 league appearances for the United this season. United's 2-0 loss to Palace left them 13th in the Premier League standings, with just eight wins from 24 fixtures.