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Ruben Amorim has apologised to Manchester United fans following his side’s shock elimination from the League Cup at the hands of fourth-tier Grimsby Town on Wednesday night.
United looked to have salvaged the tie after a disastrous first half, coming back from 2-0 down to force penalties thanks to Harry Maguire’s 89th-minute header. But a dramatic shootout ended 12-11 in Grimsby’s favour when Bryan Mbeumo struck the bar with United’s final spot-kick.
Amorim, under growing pressure since his appointment last season, admitted the defeat exposed deep-rooted problems in the team.
“The players spoke really loud today about what they want,” he said, suggesting a lack of desire within the squad. “Everything – the way we started, we were not even here. Everything is so important in this club. We should do so much better. I just have to say sorry to our fans.”
Pressed on what went wrong, the Portuguese coach conceded his side lacked urgency and were simply unprepared for the contest.
“It doesn’t matter that we lost on penalties. Football was fair today. The best team won,” he said. “I’m the manager. It’s my job to understand what happened. Again, I’m really sorry for our fans.”
With United now out of the League Cup, their realistic hopes of silverware this season rest in the FA Cup. Amorim said he would use the upcoming international break to reflect, while warning that expectations may be out of step with reality.
“You cannot change everything in one summer. But you need to win games. You need to avoid this kind of performance. I think this is a little bit the limit,” he admitted.
Amorim ended on a sombre note, acknowledging his frustration at seeing the same errors repeated:
“I would like to say very smart and important things. But I have nothing to say. That’s the biggest problem too – seeing the same mistakes and having nothing to say. I’m really sorry for our fans.”
