Ruben Amorim has admitted he regrets saying that his Manchester United squad might be the worst in the club’s history. He explained that his comments were meant to criticize himself, not his players.
He made the statement after their 3-1 loss to Brighton on Sunday but later clarified it during a press conference on Wednesday.
However, the 39-year-old also admitted that it would be unrealistic to ignore the serious challenges he faces, with his team losing seven out of the 15 games he has managed so far.
“First of all, I want to talk about that,” Amorim began after being asked about his suggestion that this is the worst United team in history.
“I was talking more about myself than the players. I also said in the same response that I was not helping my players. If you look around every time I speak and every time you push about the players are not good enough, I never put the spot on my players.
“So I understand I give you that headline and I am frustrated sometimes. Sometimes I should not say it in those terms, but it is what it is and that’s it.
“Sometimes it’s really hard to hide the frustration in the moment. But the good thing is I said the same things in a different way in the dressing room five minutes before. The response was quite normal because I’m really blunt with my players.”
After losing to Brighton, Amorim changed his usual routine by talking to his players right away in the dressing room instead of waiting until the next day for a team meeting.
Reports suggest that the former Sporting CP coach was so upset that he even broke a TV.
“I’m a young guy and sometimes I make a mistake,” Amorim said. “And that’s why I don’t [usually] talk after the game. This game, I needed to talk and maybe it was a mistake and then I get more nervous and go to the [news] conference really nervous and say things I shouldn’t say, that’s it. Sometimes I’m a young guy and I make mistakes.