Red Devils boss admits his side are bereft of confidence ahead of trip to leaders Liverpool with shambolic loss against Newcastle highlighting issue
Ruben Amorim admits the lack of confidence is palpable in his crisis-torn Manchester United players – and there’s no easy way out.
After just 38 days, with only seven points and nine goals scored in his first eight Premier League games, the Portuguese’s tenure as Old Trafford boss is already on the rocks. Rather than surging to challenge for a Champions League place, they are instead nervously looking over their shoulders fearing being dragged into an unthinkable relegation battle.
Already dumped out of the Carabao Cup, Monday’s feeble 2-0 home loss to Newcastle – which saw the shambolic Red Devils turn the year in 14th spot – was the nadir. Or at least they hope so. Having witnessed them become the first United team to lose three successive home league games since 1979, it is no surprise confidence is at an all-time low.
Amorim admitted: “Yes, and you can feel it every, single day. That is a bad thing, of course. But it’s a good thing they are feeling like that. We have to understand we’re in a very difficult moment.
“It’s really hard for them, sometimes, on the pitch, to have these losses. But we have to continue. There is no other way. We have to work hard and prepare for the next games.”
That comes in the shape of Sunday’s daunting trip to flying leaders Liverpool. The last thing any side in this wretched position needs. However, Amorim insists he won’t sacrifice his favoured three-man defence, despite them leaking a monster 18 goals in December alone.
The ex-Sporting boss won’t switch back to the four-man backline of his predecessor Erik ten Hag – who ultimately got the sack for his failures. Amorim said: “If I change the system completely, I don’t know if I’m nearer to winning. If I do that and continue to lose, then it’s worse.
“I see the game in a different way. It doesn’t matter if you are three, with five, or with four. If you know the basics and if you can train that idea, I see the game in this way. If I know, for sure, that changing everything is going to get us near to winning games, I will do it.
“When you have a change of coach, especially in this type of club, it’s because they are not winning and they play specifically in the system they were bought for. So, in that moment, with the idea of two years working in pre-seasons, they were losing. So I’m going to change for that system that I don’t believe in, to change things to win games? It doesn’t make sense. So I have to teach what I know. That is my focus. And I believe in that.”
But United’s irritating habit of shipping early goals – Newcastle’s Alexander Isak struck with a free header after barely three minutes – continues to make life even more difficult. On what will end the slump, Amorim conceded: “It’s really hard on everybody – and you feel it on the pitch.
“We showed some improvements in the first games, especially against [Manchester] City and Tottenham. Even in Arsenal the first moment, but we are losing that because of the lack of training and the lack of belief after so many losses.”
Amorim maintains he can get the necessary improvements needed from extra work on the training pitch. But then comes Anfield…
He conceded: “Yeah, it’s another big game. But we will use every minute of training to prepare for that game and to give some information, and to work on our way of playing, to try to improve our team. That’s the only thing.”
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