Manchester United manager Rúben Amorim has urged his players to maintain belief and composure as they prepare to face Tottenham at Old Trafford. The Reds are coming off a 2-2 draw against Nottingham Forest, a result that left fans both hopeful and cautious about the team’s progress.
Amorim, who has been under the spotlight since taking over at United, remains optimistic about the team’s development. Speaking to the press via the club’s official YouTube channel.
The Portuguese manager reflected on his side’s evolution since their Europa League exit to Spurs last season. He stated;
Characteristics of the players are different in the team now. We also have players who played last year. But we are a better team. We understand the game better.
We are more confident. We reached the Europa League final confident that we could win it. But in this moment, we are playing with a different confidence.
Amorim continued by emphasizing the squad’s newfound ability to adapt and change games when needed, saying;
We are more confident, we can win any game and we have proved that already. The last game was tough on us because in some moments, we weren’t the team that we were supposed to be.
We suffered two goals against Brighton too but it was different. We have a lot to improve but we are now more prepared for anything that happens in the game.
We are in a better moment but we still have a lot to do to consistently win games in a row.
We can manage the games better now. We can always change from one moment we are struggling because we have players who can do that individually and not just as team.
But if you look at Nottingham Forest game, you can sense the energy was not the same. You can see that from the first moments of the game itself.
When asked whether not playing in European competition this season has benefited his side, Amorim admitted it has allowed him and his players more time to reflect, rebuild, and connect. He noted;
It is not seeing the positives [from the defeat by Tottenham in the Europa League], it is using the positives.
I would say, yes. Any situation you have in life, you can look at it positively or in a bad way. If you ask me whether I prefer to be here with the cup and Champions League football, I might say yes.
But on the other side, you have more time to train and know your players. Arrange everything and prepare with the staff and players. So we try to use the positive thing of not playing in the midweek games. But the future will be with European competition. I can see the positives.
The manager also addressed United’s injury record and defensive struggles, two areas that have drawn criticism in recent weeks. He said;
Sometimes you have problems with players with knocks. It’s not something… soft tissues, and you never know what’s going to happen in the next training. If you play with intensity in training, anything can happen.
But I think the big reason is one game every week. You can give an extra day to the players that you know that could struggle in the next training, so I think that is the big reason.
It’s a problem. If you see the league nowadays, the team that is winning is not conceding goals. That’s a big thing.
When you have talented players, if you defend well, in one moment, you can score and win a game. But it’s a team thing. We need to defend well and be more aggressive. Everything is connected.
But we cannot concede the amount of goals we are conceding at the moment. Sometimes if you defend really well, you attack better. In the last game, they had 17 shots against us. We cannot allow that. We need to pay attention to that.
Ruben Amorim has expressed his confidence in his side ahead of the big game against Tottenham this weekend, catch the managers full reactions and answers to questions concerning Manchester United on and off the field via the Team’s YouTube channel. Watch full video below:
Meanwhile, Softfootball understands that Amorim also addressed Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent comments about Manchester United’s on and off-field struggles. The Portuguese manager acknowledged Ronaldo’s influence in world football but emphasized that the club is focused on learning from past mistakes and building a stronger future rather than dwelling on previous setbacks.
With the Tottenham test looming, Amorim will be hoping his words translate into another strong performance, one that could reignite belief among fans and set the tone for United’s push up the Premier League table.
