Ruben Amorim offers ‘no excuses’ as Man Utd face critics

Ruben Amorim feels Manchester United should be in a healthier position but says there are “no excuses” at a club that always demands success.

A poor first campaign under the Portuguese was followed by a stumbling start to the new season, but things had been looking up as the Red Devils won three on the bounce before securing a pair of 2-2 draws on the road.

United claimed late points after blowing leads at both Nottingham Forest and Tottenham, with those wasted opportunities compounded by Monday’s 1-0 home loss to 10-man Everton.

The defeat made for a “really tough” build-up to Sunday’s trip to Crystal Palace, who have had comparatively little time to prepare having played in the Conference League at Strasbourg on Thursday.

“In our club it’s the same thing because last year we had to win every game all the time,” Amorim said when it was put to him this was the kind of match United should be winning.

“We took a lot of things, a lot of criticism because we were not winning, so in our club there is no excuses.

“I said the same thing last year when we were in Europe and I said the same thing this year, the advantage and the disadvantage of not being in Europe, so there is no excuses. Last year or this year we have always to win games.”

Asked if he was disappointed with United’s 10th place in the table, Amorim said: “I think if I look at the games we should have more points because we had control of some games, we had the advantage in some games, and we lost that control.

“So, if I look at our games we should have more points and that is really disappointing and really frustrating, especially the last game.”

Matheus Cunha, Benjamin Sesko and Harry Maguire remain absent for Sunday’s trip to Palace, who may primarily line up in a 3-4-2-1 style like United but Amorim stressed the differences in their style of play.

“We play in a different way and you can understand that by data,” the Portuguese said.

“Right now, it’s hard to explain everything but they are a different club and they are doing things better than us, so that is quite simple.

“You don’t say that all (teams who play in a) 4-3-3 play in the same way, right? We play in a different moment, we defend in a different space, we try to attack in a different way. They are just doing things better than us.”

Palace have progressed impressively under Oliver Glasner, who led the club to a historic FA Cup triumph in May and has previously faced Amorim with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League.

“I played against him in Frankfurt with Sporting, so I know the (style of) play,” he said. “I take inspiration from everyone.

“When I have two weeks for (an international break), I watch all the managers and try to take all the inspiration that I can take.

“I have six years as a professional manager, so I’m always trying to learn to improve my team.”