Ruben Amorim held nothing back. After his Manchester United side suffered a truly embarrassing exit from the English League Cup, the Portuguese manager laid into his players. The Red Devils had just been knocked out in the second round by Grimsby, a team from the fourth division. Speaking after the final whistle, Amorim told the press that the winning side was “the only team that was on the field.” He repeated several times that his players “made a loud statement” that night. It was clear he was not happy with how committed his squad was.
“In the end, it doesn’t matter if we bounce back from this bad result,” the coach explained to Sky Sports. “What matters are the signs the team gave during the game and right from the start. I believe the better team won. They were the only team playing out there. Even the best players can lose when up against just a group of individuals. I think the team and the players themselves made a very loud statement today. So that’s that. We lost, and the better team won.” Amorim chose not to go into detail about his critique of the players. “I think what they said was very clear. We will move forward from today, and I believe everyone understood what happened. The way we started, with no intensity at all, our whole plan for pressing – we were completely lost. That’s why I say they made a very loud statement.”
When asked if the team was making the same mistakes as last season, Amorim agreed. He quickly offered an apology to the Manchester United supporters. The fans, he noted, have shown incredible patience and support for the club. “That’s the real problem, I think,” he said. “When you lose, but you can see something new happening, that’s different. But when you see a performance like today, it’s hard to talk about. I just want to say how truly sorry I am to the fans. The backing they’ve given me, the support they’ve shown the team… I have nothing to add. I am genuinely very sorry.”
Manchester United will host Burnley at Old Trafford this Saturday for the third round of the Premier League. Ruben Amorim stressed that everyone’s focus must shift immediately to that upcoming match. “I think the players gave their answer on the field today, so there’s no need for me to talk more about it,” he stated. “We have a game this weekend. After that, we’ll have two weeks to sort things out.”
Goalkeeper André Onana once again found himself linked to Manchester United’s struggles, especially during Grimsby’s second goal. Onana completely missed the ball after a corner kick from the opponent. Before finishing his comments on the match, Ruben Amorim made sure to take the pressure off his goalkeeper. Onana seems to be seen as a “black sheep” at Manchester United these days. “With all due respect,” Amorim emphasized, “when you lose to a fourth-division team, it’s not the goalkeeper’s fault. It’s about everything. It’s the atmosphere, it’s how we approach the competition. We know that right now, people are going to scrutinize everything. Every single detail will matter. We showed our performance today, and for me, my players made a very loud statement.”
