Manchester United suffered a 3-1 defeat to Brentford on Saturday afternoon as pressure continues to build on head coach Ruben Amorim who
Martin Keown has raised serious doubts about Manchester United’s continued backing of manager Ruben Amorim. The Red Devils slumped to a 3-1 defeat at Brentford on Saturday afternoon and have still failed to string together consecutive Premier League wins under the Portuguese head coach.
United had hoped their 2-1 victory over Chelsea the previous weekend might signal a fresh start as they looked to build momentum under the former Sporting Lisbon chief. Despite Benjamin Sesko netting his maiden goal for United, a first-half brace from Igor Thiago and Mathias Jensen’s late strike condemned the visitors to another disappointing result in West London.
The setback has intensified scrutiny on Amorim after last campaign’s dismal 15th-place finish – United’s worst in Premier League history. Former Arsenal defender Keown has now delivered a scathing assessment of Amorim’s reign, drawing parallels with the pressure Graham Potter faced at West Ham before his dismissal on Saturday.
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“It seemed obvious that [Graham] Potter was going to lose his job [at West Ham], so with Amorim, why is it not the same for him?” Keown questioned on BBC Sport.
“Is it because we’re now the ninth manager in 12 years since Sir Alex Ferguson left? This stubbornness to play the same way – they look very ordinary.
“Mbeumo playing against his old team must be wondering ‘what on earth have I signed for?’ because the team he plays against, his old team, was way better than them today. This is Manchester United in dire trouble right now. Decisions need to be made.”
Amorim confessed to feeling “hurt” following Saturday’s disappointing defeat at the Gtech Community Stadium. “It’s always the same to lose at this club, it hurts a lot,” he expressed after the match. “We need to think about the next one.
“Of course we want to win. We didn’t control the game. We played the game of Brentford. First balls, second balls, set-pieces. All the crucial moments were against us. It’s tough to lose again but we need to think about the next one.
“The first goal was a long ball. We worked on that in the week, and on set pieces. We knew the long balls were coming and one touch they had the opportunity. We need to do better.
“We didn’t play our game. We only had control for some moments. But it was more or less all the same. We need to play our games, not the opponents’, but they were stronger on that.”
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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
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