Manchester United head coach has claimed that Rasmus Hojlund’s display in the 3-0 victory over Athletic Club was perhaps his best one since his appointment as Erik ten Hag’s replacement last year.
United weathered an early storm from Athletic to score the opener through Casemiro before Dani Vivian was sent off for bringing down Rasmus Hojlund.
Bruno Fernandes scored from the spot and then grabbed his second of the match before the break at a furious San Mames, where the Red Devils now look set to return for a probably meeting with Premier League rivals Tottenham in the final after the North London club beat Bodo/Glimt 3-1 in the first leg of their semi-final.
After the final whistle, Amorim spoke to reporters in the post-match press conference and gave his verdict on the result and performance.
Asked about what message he conveyed to the players, Amorim answered, “I think they have to think about the second leg and they have to think more about the first 20 minutes of the game than the rest, because the game [return leg] is going to be really tough.”
“There are no away goals, so anything can change and that is my message to the players. We have to think about Brentford and then the second leg.”
Whether the 3-0 victory vs. Athletic was the best performance so far of his United spell, Amorim replied, “No, I think it’s the best result because nobody expected this result. But then again, I think you saw two games today – the first 25 minutes and then after the goal and then also because of the sending-off, which changed the game.”
“That was a good thing and in the second half, we tried to be cautious. We created chances and the most important thing is that the opponent did not get many shots on our goal and that was really important.”
On the more experienced players performing well, Amorim said, “It’s really important. They have to step up in these moments. They’re experienced, they’re international players and they’ve already played in these moments, so they have to step up and that’s why they’re playing here and why they are the most experienced players in this team.”
On why his players thrive in the Europa League but struggle domestically, Amorim remarked, “I think it’s hard to explain. We’ve improved in the last [few] games. I don’t just look at the results; we’ve had some games that we won that we didn’t play well and some games that we lost and we played quite well.”
“Sometimes you just need a bit of luck. If you imagine the first 30 minutes, they [Bilbao] had chances to score and if they scored, it’s a different game.”
“We need to understand these moments and when we scored, we felt more free to play. I know that it’s hard – it’s a different competition. It’s hard to understand but sometimes it’s the context in which we see things. We can win this competition but then in the Premier League, we are suffering game after game.”
On Victor Lindelof, who came up with a big block to keep out what seemed a certain goal in the first half, Amorim stated, “It’s a moment but we need to focus on the second leg and on the final if we get there. It was a moment that was important for him and he’s also an experienced player. He’s fighting for the team and these guys want to give something back to the fans because every week, no matter what happens in the Premier League, you can feel the support of our fans.”
“It was an important moment for him but more important for the team.”
Asked about Harry Maguire’s role at the club, Amorim stated, “I think it’s a good lesson for the players – sometimes you have moments and you think that you will never recover. Anything can happen and it’s not just Harry. The history of this game can tell you that. It looks like we are struggling a lot and then everything can change and everybody will maybe say it was the best game of the season.”
“We have to understand that the players have some moments in their lives, where they will just have to continue to work and everything can change.”
While he didn’t get on the score sheet, Hojlund still contributed and was a lot better than he has been over the past weeks – something Amorim fully acknowledged.
Amorim said about the Danish striker, “It’s hard to say but that was the best game he has had with me as the coach. He helped the team a lot. He secured the ball and then he made the runs, sat quite well. It was a good moment for him but like Harry, he needs to understand that everything can change. So let’s focus on the next one. This is already in the past and we have a tough job to do on Sunday and especially on Thursday.”
United are back in action on Sunday when they go away to Brentford. Kick-off is at 14:00 BST.
Featured image Clive Brunskill via Getty Images
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Derick Kinoti
Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
