Gary Lockyer has his eyes on the FA Cup’s Golden Ball and has explained exactly where Manchester United are going wrong this season.. The non-league striker, who plies his trade with Ashford United in Kent, is currently on track to snag the Golden Ball, in partnership with Mitre, for the FA Cup’s highest scorer. He has 10 goals to his name in this season’s competition, putting him firmly in pole position. And while the 32-year-old’s standard is a far cry from the Premier League, as an avid Manchester United fan, he has given his thoughts on where new boss Ruben Amorim needs to improve.. Speaking exclusively to the Manchester Evening News ahead of the FA Cup’s fourth round, Lockyer explained: “Yeah, it’s been tough this season,” adding: “We’re obviously going through that transition again. But it is United, I’ve seen the very highs and now I’m seeing the very lows. But I’m sure a big club like Man United will get back to how want to.”. On what needs to change to turn the tide at United, Lockyer added: “I’d probably say the new manager coming in – obviously he has his system that he wants to play, like a 3-4-3. I personally don’t think that we’ve got the personnel for that. I think he’s trying to implement that with players that possibly cant do it.. “I think it starts from the top, not necessarily the manager. I probably wouldn’t have gotten rid of [Erik] Ten Hag, but the manager’s the first one to go isn’t he? I think there are obviously changes. Ronaldo said in his interview that there’s a lot more that needs to be done behind the scenes before it starts operating on the pitch.”. Amorim took over the tough task of turning the tide at United following Ten Hag’s dismissal in late October, but there is still plenty of work to do at Old Trafford. The Red Devils currently sit 13th in the Premier League, with just eight wins from 24 games – with questions being raised over a lack of a proven goal scorer.. Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund both cost vast sums but neither have had the most successful time of it in front of goal. Zirkzee has achieved just three goals from 24 games, while Hojlund has struck just twice in 19.. Joshua Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund have been far from prolific (Image: Getty Images). Speaking on a lack of a proven presence up top, Lockyer added: “I like both of them really, but like you said, I think we are missing an out-and-out nine. And I think that’s a bit of a dying art in today’s football which like I am myself. I am not a running in behind person, I’m a bit of an old-fashioned number nine.. “But I was having a conversation with one of my team-mates and a nine is a bit of a dying art in the Premiership. How many have you really got? Probably Chris Wood from Nottingham Forest, but other than that I just think we need a bit of an out-and-out nine to help them two progress. Because I think they’ve got potential, they’re young as well. So having an experience forward there would only benefit them.”. United continue their own FA Cup run on Friday evening as they host Leicester City in the fourth round. It’s a fixture that Lockyer will be watching both from a fans’ perspective and to keep tabs on the competition in the race for the Golden Ball.. Gary Lockyer has had his say on Manchester United (Image: https://x.com/Lockyer_9). Sign up to our United newsletter so you never miss an update from Old Trafford this season.. While Ashford United were knocked out of the FA Cup following a 3-2 loss to Chertsey Town in September, Lockyer has put himself in a brilliant position to win the Mitre Golden Ball. He put two goals past Egham Town in the extra preliminary round of the competition, before doubling down with two more in a 1-1 draw and a 3-1 win over Harrow Borough.. Lockyer added four more goals to his record in a 6-1 win over Three Bridges before finding the back of the net once against Corinthian in the second qualifying round. The number nine then took his tally to ten in his side’s loss to Chertsey Town.. Speaking on the prospect of lifting the award come the end of the competition, the semi-pro telecommunications project manager said: “You know what, I do feel confident. I think there was a couple of times, especially from the non-league teams that we present ourselves in, there was a couple of times that these guys got to eight goals and were still in the competition, and I was keeping an eye out for their scores.. “But yeah, lucky for myself that they went out and I think now the pro clubs and the elite clubs have come into it, I think with their easy ties they tend not to play with their strongest 11 and focus on certain games around that they’ve got there. So I feel very confident that I can do it.”
