MANCHESTER, England: Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim took full responsibility following the heartbreaking 3-0 defeat at the hands of Bournemouth late last night which saw thousands of fans head for the exits long before the final whistle.
Dean Huijsen, Justin Kluivert and Antoine Semenyo scored to keep United in 13th place in the league, the first time they have been bottom at Christmas in Premier League history.
“It’s my responsibility to train them,” said Amorim.
“Of course we want to improve. At the moment, everything is too difficult, a club like Manchester United losing 3-0 at home, it’s really difficult for everyone.
“Of course the fans are also really disappointed and tired. You can feel it in the stadium and I understand that, but we have to deal with it.”
Conceding goals from set-pieces has been a theme of United’s lacklustre season and the issue came to a head again late last night when Huijsen headed home from a corner kick in the 29th minute.
It was the 17th goal conceded by United from a set-piece in the EPL in 2024, the most by them in a calendar year in the league’s 32-year history.
“Not conceding a goal to the opponent and then a set-piece made us nervous, everyone in the stadium, I felt it from the first minute. There was a lot of anxiety, that’s normal because of the context and it was really disappointing,” said Amorim.
United had 23 attempts to Bournemouth’s 10, but were unable to finish, with captain Bruno Fernandes firing a powerful shot just wide of the net late in the first half.
Amorim said the team’s struggles were largely “mental.”