Ruben Amorim says Manchester United’s performance against lowly Southampton will teach him more about his players after positive results against Liverpool and Arsenal.
The Red Devils ended a four-game losing streak in a 2-2 draw with Liverpool in the Premier League earlier this month, before knocking Arsenal out of the FA Cup on penalties on Sunday.
United also beat Manchester City in December, but followed that up with defeats to Tottenham, Newcastle, Bournemouth and Wolves.
And Amorim says he is looking for improvement in performances against lesser teams, where they are expected to dominate the ball, rather than in big games.
The Portuguese boss said: “This next match will teach me more about my players than the previous two, so I’m really focused on the kind of match we are going to play tomorrow, so I will learn more tomorrow.”
When asked why he would learn more, he replied: “Because there are no expectations for us in the last two games.
“No one believed we could put in a good performance or win a game, but now they expect us to win and play well, so I will learn more from this game.”
–Manchester United (@ManUtd) January 15, 2025
Asked if he was worried about facing the Saints, he replied: “I’m always worried because we haven’t had the consistency in these games in terms of performances or results, so I’m always worried – it’s my job to worry.
“We have to face Southampton the same way we faced Liverpool and Arsenal – understanding that they are different games.
“People expect us to win and that changes things. When you have the pressure to win, that’s the pressure we want and sometimes it’s harder to deal with that pressure because against Arsenal and Liverpool, no one expected us to beat those teams, but now it’s different.
“We need to prepare for that pressure, we need that pressure to improve as a team and we need to face the game the right way.”
Amorim doesn’t feel the pressure
Amorim has had a topsy-turvy tenure so far since replacing Erik ten Hag, with the club currently languishing in 14th place in the Premier League, but insists he does not feel under pressure to Old Trafford.
He added: “Of course you feel the pressure from the club but at the moment I don’t feel that pressure.
“In recent years we have not won the championship. In the past, if you didn’t win the championship one year, you had to win it the next year. I don’t feel this pressure.
“We have to put that pressure on ourselves because the fans outside are incredible. I don’t feel that pressure, I just want to win. To feel that pressure in the future we have to win – we have to win titles and we have to win games.
