Manager Ruben Amorim's disastrous tenure at Manchester United was further compounded at the weekend as they lost 3-1 at home to Brighton.
Appointed in the summer to replace Erik ten Hag, the former Sporting CP coach has faced several challenges in his first season in charge, with performances falling well short of expectations.
The latest setback came in the disappointing loss to Brighton at Old Trafford, where Yankuba Minteh opened the scoring for the visitors before a brief respite for United thanks to a penalty from Bruno Fernandes in the 23rd minute.
After the break, the Seagulls took control as Kaoru Mitoma and Georginio Rutter piled on the misery for the Red Devils, who are now down in 13th position with only seven wins in 22 games.
Amorim’s tactical approach, which has often involved fluid attacking play and a high press, has struggled to yield consistent results with the United squad he inherited.
Defensive frailties and a lack of cohesion in the midfield have been recurring issues. The defeat to Brighton has added further pressure on the Portuguese coach.
The United boss appears to have lost faith in his side, admitting that they are among the worst in the club’s history.
“In [the last] ten games in Premier League, we won two,” he said.
“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 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 at 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.”
