The schedule makers didn’t do Ruben Amorim any favors to start the Premier League season, but his Manchester United showed up to play against Arsenal on Sunday.
Passionate effort was once fundamental at Man United but that bar’s gone uncleared many times over the last decade. That wasn’t the case on Sunday.
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Amorim will have wanted to win but will feel his team did enough to get a result were it not for Altay Bayindir’s dreadful moment defending a corner after just 13 minutes.
The Man United boss did not start Benjamin Sesko but did put Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo in his Starting XI. The attacking group was better than last season and certainly steadier, but the high danger chances were at a minimum.
Ruben Amorim reaction — What did Manchester United manager say after Week 1 versus Arsenal?
Reaction to the performance? “I’m really proud of the guys. They were really brave in everything they did during the game. Congratulations for the performance but not the result because we lost the game at home. We deserved a better result.”
What was different? “We were more aggressive than last year. We sprinted more. We were more brave. We went 1v1 all game. And then with the ball we had quality. When the stadium makes some sounds, we continued the play the way we play. We lost fewer balls in the buildup compared to last year. And then the small things we talk about in the beginning of the season — players like Cunha and Bryan can elevate the stadium. I think the most important thing — we were not boring.”
Fan reaction strong at the final whistle? “Even during the game. We need to win games but that was completely different than last season.”
On Arsenal’s goal/Bayindir’s error: “More or less the thing that happened last year. It’s not playing the ball. It’s protecting the guys who are attacking. When you touch the goalkeeper like that, I don’t like it. ... “It’s hard to be strong when you have to push for the ball. You have to push but then you need your hands to go for the ball. We are not changing the rules. We have to adapt to the rules.”
