Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim lamented that he was unable to protect all three points against West Ham, feeling “angry” and “frustrated”. The Red Devils looked poised for back-to-back wins at Old Trafford after Diogo Dalot put them ahead in the second half. However, the Hammers fought back to secure a draw in the closing stages as Sungutu Magassa equalized with his first Premier League goal.
This result left United in 8th place in the Premier League table, missing out on a golden opportunity to move up to 5th place. A clearly frustrated Amorim lamented his team’s inability to seal the victory. He said this in just a few words. “I’m frustrated and angry, that’s all.”
He added: “(Our performance) was inconsistent. We had some good moments, but we lost control a little bit in the first half and in the second half after the goal. We should have ended the game once we scored the first goal.”
“We were in control of the game, we knew it. We were going to defend from far out in the box. We knew set-pieces would be a problem because of the height difference in the team, but we did that. After the first goal, we kept the ball, but again we conceded two points.”
When asked why the team was unable to achieve victory, Amorim suggested a lack of challenge and commitment to scoring goals.
He added: “We just lost the second ball, and that’s when they kicked the long ball. Matheus (Fernandes) was running with the ball. They won the first ball and then Bowen was running in. You can’t control a game like that. After the first goal, we should have been able to handle the ball more.”
“Cunha had a big chance. He had the ball close to the box, but the cross was not good. Sometimes the characteristics of a player in the box are not good. It’s not good enough to score from that position.”
United will be looking to get back to winning form when they take on struggling Wolves at home on Monday night. Amorim urged his team to rediscover their rhythm to avoid falling further behind in the race for the top four.
“Everything is important, every game is important. We have to win the next game.”
