Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has delivered a scathing assessment of his team's lack of competitiveness after they conceded a late, frustrating equaliser to West Ham United at Old Trafford.
Late Heartbreak at the Theatre of Dreams
The Red Devils appeared to be heading for a crucial victory on Thursday night, thanks to Diogo Dalot's 58th-minute strike. A win would have propelled Amorim's side up to fifth place in the fiercely contested Premier League table.
However, their hopes were dashed in the 83rd minute when West Ham's Soungoutou Magassa pounced to level the score. The goal came after Noussair Mazraoui had initially cleared a Jarrod Bowen header off the line, with Magassa showing the quickest reactions in the penalty area.
Amorim's Blunt Post-Match Verdict
In a terse post-match interview, the United boss did not hide his feelings. "Frustrated, angry, that's it," Amorim stated bluntly. He pinpointed a specific defensive failure that led to the equaliser, highlighting a fundamental lack of aggression from his players.
"It happened with a long ball, they win the second ball against three guys," he explained. "Second balls sometimes are tactical things. We try to adjust with the players we have." Amorim also expressed disbelief that his team allowed a set-piece opportunity in the dying moments, adding, "We cannot let a team that is so much taller than us have a corner."
A Worrying Trend of Home Stumbles
The final whistle was met with a chorus of boos from the Old Trafford faithful, who have now witnessed their team fail to win in two consecutive home matches against opponents they were expected to beat.
This disappointing result follows last week's 1-0 home defeat to Everton, a match in which the Toffees played with ten men for over an hour. The draw with West Ham is particularly galling given that the Hammers started and finished the day inside the Premier League's bottom three.
The consequences for United's league position are significant. Instead of climbing into the European spots, they now find themselves in eighth place after 14 games, with a record of six wins, four draws, and four defeats. In a congested mid-table, these dropped points could prove very costly come the end of the season.
