Manchester United have turned in encouraging performances against Liverpool and Arsenal over recent weeks and the Red Devils will be aiming to continue their positive form against Southampton
Ruben Amorim claims he will learn more about his Manchester United players against Southampton than in their performances against Liverpool and Arsenal.
United gained a fine draw at Anfield before their 10-men knocked Arsenal out of the FA Cup at the Emirates on Sunday. Amorim was delighted with the two displays, but says Thursday night’s game against rock-bottom Southampton will teach him more against his side because they are expected to win.
Amorim wants to see his side take control of games more and play more in their opponents’ final third. He says Saints will be the perfect test of that to see how far United are progressing under him.
“I think this next game will teach me more about my players than the last two, so I’m focused to see what kind of game we will play tomorrow,” said the United boss. “We will know more tomorrow.
“There was no expectation for us in the last two games, nobody expected us to do what we did. But now they are expecting us to win and play well, so we will learn more.”
Amorim says United will be under much more pressure against Southampton and he says it is his job to worry. “I’m always concerned because we didn’t have during these games the consistency in performance in results, so I’m always worried, it’s my job to be worried,” he said.
“But we have to face Southampton in the same way we faced Liverpool and Arsenal, that’s the goal. Not more, not less, face that game.
“I understand there are difficult games and people expect us to win. That changes things. When you have the pressure to win, that’s the pressure we want. Sometimes it’s hard.
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“Against Arsenal and Liverpool, nobody was expecting us to beat those teams, but now we have to be prepared for that pressure. We need that pressure as a team and face the game the right way.”
Amorim does not feel the weight of managing United because of their glorious past and says he wants to feel that pressure brought by winning titles.
“In this moment, I don’t feel that pressure because in the last years we didn’t win the league,” he said. “If you follow this club in the past, if you don’t win the league one year, you must win it the next year.
“We need to bring that pressure to us. I don’t feel that pressure to win and we need to feel that pressure in the future. We need to win titles and games in this moment.”
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