Ruben Amorim has been criticised by two pundits for claiming that his side are the “worst team maybe in the history” of Man Utd.
The Red Devils looked like they might have turned a corner after a 2-2 draw against Liverpool at Anfield and a penalty shootout win over Arsenal in the FA Cup third round earlier this month.
But two poor performances against Southampton, although Man Utd ended up winning 3-1, and Brighton have deflated supporters.
Yankuba Minteh, Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter scored the goals as the Seagulls beat the Red Devils 3-1 and leave Amorim’s side 13th in the Premier League table.
Amorim hasn’t improved the Red Devils’ position in the Premier League table since he took over from Erik ten Hag in November and the Portuguese head coach made a shocking statement that his side are the “worst team maybe in the history” of Man Utd.
Speaking after the match against Brighton, Amorim said: “In [the past] 10 games in Premier League, we won two. Imagine what this is for a fan of Manchester United. Imagine what this is for me.
“We are getting a new coach who is losing more than the last coach. I have full knowledge of that.
“We are the worst team maybe in the history of Manchester United. I know you [media] want headlines but I am saying that because we have to acknowledge that and to change that. Here you go: your headlines.”
Amorim added: “I knew that was going to be hard to put a completely new idea in the moment, but when you lose games and don’t win three games in a row it becomes really hard.
“Everybody here is underperforming and we have to accept that. It is unacceptable to lose so many games. The opponents are better than us in many details.
“We cannot be consistent and I’m not helping my players in the moment. You have to acknowledge we are in a very difficult situation, with all the bad records, as losing games at home, losing games in the Premier League.
“I know we can succeed but I am not naive. We need to survive this moment. But I am not going to change, no matter what.”
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Former Liverpool player Steve Nicol insists he was “shaking his head” at Amorim’s comments after the match and told the Man Utd boss that “you can’t say that”.
Nicol told ESPN: “I’m shaking my head. You can’t say that. For him to come out and say that, you just can’t do it.
“I don’t know what he thinks the reaction from the players is going to be after that. You just can’t say it. Sometimes you just need to lie.”
Ex-MLS player Alejandro Moreno added: “It’s not helpful. I’m not asking you to lie to me but the players will know they’re not very good and know they’re struggling.
“They don’t really need their manager to tell the world that. It doesn’t fill me with loads of confidence if I’m a player in that dressing room.
“I don’t think the players needed to hear that. The one person who can’t lose faith in the players is the manager. If he loses faith, then everything else falls apart.
“You have to lie, you misrepresent the truth, you repackage the message and present a new reality.”
