Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has expressed frustration over his side’s poor game management, blaming it for the disappointing 1-1 draw against Fulham.
United held by Fulham
United’s wait for a first win of the 2025/26 season is set to continue, as Fulham came from behind to ensure the spoils were shared at Craven Cottage on Sunday.
United started the game well, producing chances and looking threatening but they were unable to find the back of the net.
Bruno Fernandes had the opportunity to put the Red Devils ahead from the penalty spot after Mason Mount was brought down by Calvin Bassey, but the skipper blazed it well over the bar.
Against the run of play, United broke the deadlock in the 58th minute as Leny Yoro’s header from a corner took a deflection off of Rodrigo Muniz and caught Bernd Leno wrong-footed.
United’s lead didn’t last for too long as Fulham drew level just 15 minutes later, with substitute Emile Smith Rowe equalising with his first touch of the ball.
After the game, Amorim spoke to BBC Radio 5 Live and explained what went wrong against the Cottagers.
Amorim’s verdict on the game
He said, “I think we scored the goal and then we forgot about how we play. We want to win so badly, and that is a good feeling, that we scored a goal and everyone on the pitch was thinking, ‘Let’s hold onto the advantage and try to win the game’.”
“For me that is the moment that we have to enjoy more and push the opponent. We tried to press the opponent super high and left a lot of space.”
“We have to grow up a lot as a team. For me the most important thing is that during the week they were working really hard, today we worked really hard, and we are going to improve.”
“The moment that changed the game was our goal.”
On the team ‘growing up’, Amorim added, “Training, in the game. You need to win to have the feeling to relax a little bit, not in the intensity and the way we play, but maintaining our mind. We suffer a little bit in the end because the momentum changed more with the goal of Fulham.”
“In the first half we were there, we missed a penalty…Fernandes has so much responsibility with him that I felt the lack of joy [when he missed] and he was thinking in the past. Now we have to move forward no matter what happens.”
The Portuguese coach also told Sky Sports, “We can do better but we are putting the effort so that is the most important to me. In some moments we did well, especially in the beginning of the game. After the goal we were just thinking about the result. We were ok until the goal and then we were not smart in that moment.”
“We have to think about the performance. I know what the feeling is of a player who has to win every match. We missed a penalty, we missed some chances and then we score and we had to defend that goal. We have to focus on our movements and play until the end.”
Asked about United’s struggles when defending set pieces, Amorim answered, “We tried to press high but after a few times we pushed the ball to the side too soon. We wanted to press all of the time but sometimes we have to manage the game in that moment and try to drop a little bit. They had more space than us when they were attacking.”
He remarked about Fernandes’ wild penalty miss, “I think he is not used to missing penalties. He knows the importance that this moment can have [and make a] huge impact on the team.”
“During the game he was not happy because he was not involved and he has so much responsibility and I think he thought missing the penalty was huge for us.”
Amorim expressed confidence that United will win many games and that the players are fully focused on this primary objective.
Featured image Justin Setterfield 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!
