2025-11-25 02:48:01
Ruben Amorim says his Manchester United players’ “understanding of every situation in the game was not there” in defeat to Everton on Monday.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored the only goal of the game at Old Trafford to end a five-game unbeaten run for the Red Devils, after Idrissa Gueye had been sent off for slapping teammate Michael Keane in the 13th minute.
READ MORE: Amorim and ’embarrassing’ Man Utd return to the doldrums vs ten-man Everton
Jordan Pickford produced one excellent save to deny Joshua Zirkzee and Bruno Fernandes missed a good chance but other than that Manchester United looked limp and toothless in attack as the ten men of Everton defended their goal relatively comfortably.
Amorim has been heavily criticised for his refusal to tweak his 3-4-2-1 system since arriving at Old Trafford almost exactly a year ago, and after a recent uptick in form Carragher initiated the return of that criticism by insisting the Portuguese boss deserves “a lot of blame” for the defeat.
After the game, Amorim gave a damning assessment of his side’s performance, insisting “Everton were the better team” on a hugely “frustrating” night for him and his players.
Amorim told Sky Sports: “I’m feeling really frustrated, like any other person that supports Manchester United. We should be frustrated with the way we started the game and the way we didn’t understand how we should play against 10 men. They deserved to win. We had a lot of chances in the second half through crosses and second balls, but the quality and decision-making wasn’t there. Everton were the better team.
“After the sending off, I was expecting us to have long periods of possession and to push the opponent. We didn’t control the transitions, even with 10 men. We were giving them big spaces to win second balls, so the understanding of every situation in the game was not there.
“The quality around the box is another big thing, but more importantly it was the intensity we showed. We cannot win games in this way.”
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On whether the performance surprised him after a good run of form, Amorim added: “Of course it did. I understand that we still have a lot to do, but I’m really frustrated with how we handled the game. Especially knowing that we were playing at home, knowing what happened to the other clubs, looking at the table and feeling everything.
“The way we presented ourselves in the first minute of the game is really frustrating. We dropped the level.”
