It’s nearly 12 months since Ruben Amorim momentarily adopted his inner Tommy Shelby to convey a serious warning to his Manchester United squad: “NO. F***ING. FIGHTING.” During the opening leg of United’s Europa League tie against Real Sociedad last season, Rasmus Hojlund and Diogo Dalot almost exchanged blows after Dalot neglected to pass the ball across for Hojlund when the striker was perfectly positioned to convert what would have been the opening goal.

Already suffering through an 18-match scoring drought, the Danish forward responded with fury to the squandered chance, throwing his arms upward before delivering a barrage of sharp words towards his colleague. Dalot fired back, and momentarily the confrontation looked set to escalate, though peace was ultimately restored. Following the match, Amorim urged his players to keep their aggression in check. “The important thing is to move on and not be fighting,” he said.

“I’m just imagining Diogo didn’t know for sure that Rasmus had the advantage and he felt that he had a lot of time to think of the play. It was a clear position, Rasmus did really well, Dalot did really well, but the decision was not the best.”

The controversial moment was soon forgotten when Joshua Zirkzee put United in front early during the second period. That lead didn’t last long, though, as Real Sociedad equalised from the spot shortly afterwards.

United ultimately won the tie comfortably, however, romping to a 4-1 triumph in the second leg at Old Trafford, with Dalot among those on the scoresheet.

A year later, the paths of Hojlund and Dalot have diverged considerably. Following a return of merely four Premier League goals across 32 outings last term, United seemingly decided to move on from the Danish forward, splashing out £74million on Benjamin Sesko in the summer transfer market.

Hojlund was then sent on a season-long loan to Napoli, where he has rekindled his goalscoring form. He presently tops the club’s scoring rankings with 13 goals across all competitions, whilst former United midfielder Scott McTominay occupies second place with 10.

At the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona, Hojlund is recording a league goal every 0.4 matches – an improvement on the 0.2 he achieved at Old Trafford. He remains tied to United contractually and is scheduled to return to Manchester when the season concludes, but with Sesko hitting his stride, the likelihood of Hojlund still being at Old Trafford come the summer’s transfer deadline day seems progressively slim.

Regarding Dalot, he has maintained his place in United’s first team despite the managerial upheaval. The Portuguese defender proved himself a dependable figure under Amorim, typically deployed as either a right- or left-wing back.

Following Amorim’s exit in January, caretaker manager Michael Carrick has demonstrated comparable trust. After switching back to a four-man defence, Carrick has reinstated the 26-year-old in his preferred right-back role, where his reliability and tactical awareness remain valuable assets.

Overall, Dalot is approaching 250 matches for Manchester United, having established himself as a regular starter throughout the last five campaigns.