KOBBIE MAINOO POST MATCH INTERVIEW VS. LIVERPOOL

 

ANGRY ARNE SLOT SAYS VAR HAS BEEN AGAINST LIVERPOOL ALL SEASONADTER BENJAMIN SAlESKO GOAL

Arne Slot hout out at VAR after Benjamin Sesko's goal against Liverpool was allowed to stand in Manchester United's 3-2 win over the Reds

Arne Slot was furious after Liverpool's defeat

Arne Slot launched into an impassioned rant criticising VAR interventions and a recurring failing of his Liverpool team after a frustrating loss at Manchester United.

The injury-hit Reds were beaten 3-2 in the Premier League at Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon having overcome a dreadful first-half showing to level with Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo goals after the break before Kobbie Mainoo struck the winner 13 minutes from time.

United had scored twice inside the opening 14 minutes, first through a deflected Matheus Cunha strike and then a Benjamin Sesko close-range effort that was allowed after a lengthy VAR check despite replays indicating the striker handled the ball.

And while unimpressed at his team allowing Sesko to have the chance to score, a riled Slot pointed the finger at what he believes is the latest in a long line of questionable VAR calls against his team this season.

"If it was a touch, which I think it is because if you know a bit about ball sports, you know that if a ball has a certain curve and the curve changes, there must have been a contact," said the Reds boss.

"But if it's light then we should have a debate in football about whether that's enough to disallow a goal.

"But the rule is if there was a touch then it should have been disallowed.

"I don't think it's a surprise to anyone this season that if there's a VAR intervention or if there's something that could be left or could be right (50-50) then the decision goes against us.

"That has been the whole season every single time this season. I remember Paris Saint-Germain at home, getting a penalty for a soft touch on Mac Allister but of course the VAR intervenes and says no, no, no, this is not a penalty. Then one week later when I see Paris Saint-Germain play against Bayern Munich and get that same soft touch but the penalty stays.

"I saw last week my goalkeeper on the floor with an injury and the referee doesn't stop the game. I see a player of United off the pitch today and the referee stops the game when we try to play on. That has been our whole season."

Slot added: "But the second goal we didn't concede because of a handball, we conceded it because we lost the ball in a stupid position and we lost a few big moments afterwards in duels.

"We have to first look at ourselves, that is completely clear and obvious, but that decisions have gone every single game against us, that's also completely clear and obvious.

"When we played United the first time this season, I had one of my players needing five stitches on the floor, and the referee didn't stop the game and we conceded. This is a complete pattern over the whole season, but there is also a pattern that we concede ridiculous goals when we are the better team, one or two are switching off and then we concede a goal.

"That we have more influence on, so I should focus much more on that than on these referee decisions that go against us. It's clear that it's the whole season the same."

- Ian Doyle

MAN UNITED 3-2 LIVERPOOL: RED DEVILS QUALIFY FOR THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE THANKS TO KOBBIE MAINOO'S SUPERB LATE WINNER - AFTER TWO ERRORS SAW BITTER RIVALS MOUNT SECOND-HALF FIGHTBACK

Maybe it was actually sweeter for Manchester United to win this way. To give their great rivals some hope and then snatch it away from them again

Michael Carrick and his United team are back in the Champions League and this was quite some way to do it.

Fifteen minutes in and United were two goals up and rampant. Liverpool scored seven at Anfield against Erik ten Hag’s version of United back in 2023 and, after those early goals from Matheus Cunha and then Benjamin Sesko, Carrick’s players must have sniffed some kind of ultimate payback.

Liverpool were hopeless and hapless. Full of possession and territory but all at sea once United’s red waves of counter-attack broke on their shores.

Oblivion beckoned and United and their supporters would have given anything at this stage to be able to dish out a proper hiding. They have suffered enough at the hands of their great rivals in recent times.

But if that wasn’t to be possible then maybe this was a perfect alternative. To drag Liverpool up from their knees and then catapult them back down into the dirt.

Twice in the first eleven minutes of the second half, United coughed up the ball to give Liverpool two goals and parity. It was a comeback that came from nowhere. 

It was the perfect start for United as Matheus Cunha struck inside six minutes at Old Trafford

Young substitute Amad Diallo was the first to err, Dominik Szoboszlai running clear to score. Then, almost immediately, goalkeeper Senne Lammens messed up a short goal kick and Cody Gakpo rolled the ball in to an empty net.

All of a sudden – and for a while – calamity looked as though it could  be United's. Liverpool were now the better team.

Harry Maguire made a great block to deny Gakpo and then Lammens hacked a ball off his line after a scramble at a set piece.

For both teams a draw seemed palatable as the clock ran down but Carrick’s United are running hot in a way that Liverpool are not.

Benjamin Sesko bundled Manchester United's second over the line just eight minutes later

The defending champions’ efforts at the back end of games have been pretty woeful this season. And so when Alexis MacAllister cleared Luke Shaw’s cross to the edge of the penalty area with 13 minutes left, it was no great surprise that Kobbie Mainoo was there to drive the ball back low and hard and in to the corner.

It was an emphatic finish and it seemed appropriate. For United’s football had been this way and Liverpool’s had not. Liverpool were much better in the second half but still needed two United mistakes to get them back in to the game.

Over the piece, they were pretty limp going forward. No cleverness, no element of surprise and certainly no pace.

United remain far from the perfect team but they do know how to make things happen and here – when they needed to – they absolutely did. At times they did here what Liverpool used to do to them. Soaked up pressure, stole the ball and then sprang forward devastatingly.

Dominik Szoboszlai halved the deficit for Liverpool after Amad's error early in the second half

Indeed, their start was breathtaking. Carrick’s team had been out of the blocks quickly against Brentford on Monday but this was Liverpool so this meant more.

United have pace to burn these days. Their opponents are not so blessed, especially with players like Mo Salah and Hugo Ekitike missing.

So we were treated to the sight of United sitting happily in their own half and watching Liverpool pass the ball around in front of them. Then, when they took possession themselves, they were able to break with menace. Liverpool couldn’t cope and were fortunate only to be two goals down by half-time.

United’s first goal came from a corner and though it carried a little luck, it was also the result of early pressure.

Liverpool only half cleared the ball to the edge of the penalty area and when Cunha’s first shot came back to him off Ryan Gravenberch, his second struck MacAllister and bobbled in to the corner past Freddie Woodman in the visitors’ goal.

Woodman has enjoyed himself since replacing Giorgi Mamardashvili towards the end of the Merseyside derby. He helped to win that game and did likewise against Crystal Palace a week later. But this was different.

Liverpool were up against it from the first whistle and by the time we had played 14 minutes, United had doubled their lead.

This one came after a long VAR check but was correctly awarded. Liverpool may have thought they had seen off the danger as Woodman blocked from Sesko. But when the ball was recycled and Shaw crossed to the far post, Bruno Fernandes’ header across goal was pawed out by the Liverpool keeper and that enabled Sesko to bundle it in.

The VAR check was for a handball against the scorer and there may have been one. But TV didn’t provide conclusive evidence and United had distance between themselves and their opponents.

It had been a frantic start but the game settled into a rhythm for a while thereafter. Liverpool had plenty of the ball but did nothing with it. By half-time, all Slot’s team had to show for their territory were two shots wide from 20 yards and one from Gravenberch that arrived from even further out and was saved by Lammens comfortably.

United, meanwhile, continued to carry intent and menace. Indeed when Bryan Mbeumo broke down the right to cross low, Fernandes should have done better than drill a first-time shot wide of the near post from twelve yards. Had that one gone in to make it 3-0, we would have been spared all the subsequent drama and excitement.

Cody Gakpo then levelled terms after a wayward pass out from goalkeeper Serge Lammens

As it was, when Liverpool did find a way back in to the game it was completely unexpected. Carrick made a change at half-time as Amad replaced Sesko and one of the young forward’s first contributions was to pass the ball straight to Szoboszlai.

The Hungarian still had half of the field to navigate but with United defenders backing off, he turned past Maguire comfortably and pulled his left-foot shot across Lammens and into the corner from 14 yards.

One mistake was careless and shouldn’t have been cause for panic. The second, coming in the 56th minute, was unforgivable. This one came from the modern obsession with short goal kicks and blew up in United’s face as Lammens passed straight to MacAllister and he worked the ball to Szobozslai who squared calmly for Gakpo to score.

Utter embarrassment suddenly beckoned for United and for a while it looked possible. Liverpool were the better team for twenty minutes and half chances were theirs. They needed to take one, though, and that they didn’t eventually cost them. Mainoo’s finish really was fabulous.

Liverpool pushed again at the end. It would have been hard to begrudge them a point. But the right side of the fine margins continue to elude them and a cameo from young winger Rio Ngumoah wasn’t enough to save them.

This was league defeat number eleven for Slot’s team. Sunderland and Leeds – both promoted last season – have lost only one more each. Both United and Liverpool will in all likelihood both play Champions League next season but they way they feel about that will be quite different.

- IAN LADYMAN

RUBEN AMORIM PRAISES MANCHESTER UNITED UNSUNG HERO 'WHO NEEDED 10 MINUTES' TO SHINE IN ATHLETIC CLUB WIN

Ruben Amorim piled the praise on his Manchester United substitutes after they inspired a comeback victory over Athletic Club in the Europa League semi-final second leg. Mikel Jauregizar gave the visitors a deserved lead at Old Trafford but the Basque club failed to capitalise on their dominance as United staged an impressive second-half performance.

Mason Mount drew the second leg level with a stunning effort from the edge of the box, before Casemiro headed in a second to put his side ahead on the night. Rasmus Hojlund poked in a third to seal the victory and Mount grabbed a spectacular brace with an effort from close to the halfway line.

Mount and fellow substitute Amad Diallo drew most of the praise for their contribution from the bench, though Amorim was also full of praise for Kobbie Mainoo, who helped United control the midfield battle in the closing stages of the match.

Mainoo the unsung hero

Speaking after the 4-1 victory over Athletic Club on Thursday night, Ruben Amorim made sure to praise the Manchester United substitutes for their impact. Most of the praise was for Mason Mount, though the United head coach also drew attention to the role Kobbie Mainoo played from the bench.

"I'm so happy for him. He is such a player. He works really hard, he has quality," Amorim told TNT Sports. "I really like Kobbie Mainoo, just 10 minutes but everything he did was really good and sometimes you're on the bench and can change the game.

“When you see that kind of guy like Mason working hard every day, eating well, having ice baths, when you have this kind of player you just want to help him. He is perfect for this position as he can be a midfielder, but also runs like a winger so I'm really happy for him.

"When you have a full squad you can think about the game. Sometimes we're surviving with people in different positions, but with more options you can change the game and push forwards and these things can help you win games."

- Rich Fay

'MY JOB IS SO HARD' - ADMITS MANCHESTER UNITED ISSUES MOUNTAIN AMID INJURIES

Ruben Amorim was forced to name a depleted squad against Tottenham (John Walton/PA)

Ruben Amorim bemoaned how hard his Manchester United job was after his injury-hit team lost 1-0 at Tottenham on a day where Amad Diallo was ruled out for the rest of the season.

Diallo sustained an innocuous ankle ligament injury in training this week but was not the only absentee in north London with Kobbie Mainoo, Manuel Ugarte and Toby Collyer unavailable with knocks, while Leny Yoro and Christian Eriksen were ill.

The aforementioned six joined the likes of Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw and Mason Mount on the treatment table, which left Amorim with limited options at Spurs as he largely named a bench full of teenagers and watched his team lose for a 12th time in the Premier League this term to drop to 15th.

Amad Diallo has been ruled out for the rest of the season (Martin Rickett/PA)

“I have a lot of problems. My job is so hard but I’m here to continue my job to the next week with my beliefs. I will try to do it, I will try to win again,” Amorim told Sky Sports, with a trip to in-form Everton up next.

“In this moment it is more than the idea or system. In this moment it is like survive and to think the small things, improve the small things for the next game, to not even look at the table or the schedule or nothing.

“Of course I have to because we have a lot of games and we have three competitions with a small squad at the moment.

“That part is my part but the players, everyone in Carrington, just focus on the next game, the next training and that is our goal.

United are down to 15th after defeat at Tottenham (John Walton/PA)

“Just focus on the next game and let’s do everything to win some games to finish the season and then think in the big picture.

“In this moment it is to try to keep the players healthy, recover some players and to focus on what we have to in the next game. That is our goal.”

However, former United defender Gary Neville was critical of Amorim’s tactics and in particular his deployment of midfielders Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, during Sky’s commentary on the game.

Neville said: “United may win today and may score goals, but I have to say that the structure of the team is awful.

“The gaps in that midfield between Fernandes and Casemiro. That’s a tactic, they’ve been asked to do that, Bruno’s been asked to come out to this side and it isn’t right.

“Bruno Fernandes is playing right-wing, the two of them in midfield are split, it’s embarrassing. You wouldn’t see this in under-9s or under-10s football.”

Amorim expressed hope that Yoro and Eriksen would return for Saturday’s clash at Goodison Park but does not expect Mainoo to be available.

He added: “It’s hard to know. Let’s wait a few more days. I think Leny and Chris were sick so they will recover.

“Of course Chris has the heart situation and we have to be really careful with that. It’s nothing about the heart. I am just saying the heart rate has to be controlled because he has a fever. I think he will recover.

“The rest we will see. Kobbie is out. Amad is out for sure until the end of the season.”

Quizzed on what the injuries are down to, Amorim insisted: “I think it is everything together.

“Amad was alone. He was doing a tackle. The feet were sticking in the grass and some players felt during training sickness so it is everything.

“Sometimes in moments, everything goes wrong but we have to face the challenge and to focus on the next game. That’s all.”

- George Sessions

MAN UNITED 'WANT TO SELL' TOP STAR 'TO COVER COST' OF ONE 'BLOCKBUSTER SIGNING' IN THE SUMMER

Alejandro Balde could replace Alejandro Garnacho in the summer transfer window.

Man Utd will look to sell Alejandro Garnacho in the summer transfer window in order to fund a move for Barcelona left-back Alejandro Balde, according to reports.

The Red Devils are currently 13th in the Premier League table as they continue their terrible form this season with a crucial clash against 14th-placed Tottenham coming up on Sunday.

Man Utd have failed to improve under new boss Ruben Amorim after the Portuguese coach replaced Erik ten Hag in November with the Red Devils winning just four of their 14 Premier League matches during his tenure.

The Red Devils, who had Erik ten Hag in charge at the time, spent around £180m on new signings in the summer transfer window with Joshua Zirkzee, Noussair Mazraoui, Matthijs de Ligt, Leny Yoro and Manuel Ugarte arriving.

However, that recruitment drive negatively impacted the January transfer window with new manager Amorim afforded one new player in Patrick Dorgu from Lens.

Man Utd are reportedly close to their Premier League profit and sustainability (PSR) limit with the Red Devils even considering sales of young players like Kobbie Mainoo and Garnacho to balance the books.

And now Spanish publication Fichajes claims that Man Utd ‘have a plan to sign a Barcelona star’ in the summer transfer window as they look to give Amorim more balance to his squad.

It is understood that Man Utd ‘want to sell’ Garnacho ‘to cover the cost of a blockbuster signing’ in the form of Barcelona left-back Balde.

The Red Devils are ‘planning an ambitious strategy to strengthen their squad in the upcoming summer transfer market’ with the Spain international becoming ‘a priority target’.

Man Utd are ‘willing to part’ with Argentina international Garnacho ‘whose sale could provide the necessary funds to complete the arrival of the left-back from FC Barcelona’.

Garnacho has proved effective in spells off the bench but is struggling to find a long-term place in Amorim’s starting XI as the Man Utd boss could look to better suited players for his system and style of play.

It is claimed that Amorim ‘highly values his impact on the team and his performance in key moments’ but that ‘United’s delicate financial situation and the need to strengthen the defence could mean the Argentine is the sacrificial piece in the summer’.

On Balde, Amorim ‘believes that his incorporation would strengthen the left wing, where the team is still looking for solutions despite the recent arrival of Patrick Dorgu’.

Barcelona ‘will not let him go easily’ with Balde valued at around €50m by the Catalan giants, while a Garnacho sale shouldn’t be a problem after January interest from both Napoli and Chelsea.

- Joe Williams

RÚBEN AMORIM: YOU GUYS FEEL LIKE KOBBIE MAINOO IS FINISHED PRODUCT - HE IS NOT

Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo slides into a bank of snow during last weekend's Premier League match at Anfield.

Ruben Amorim has warned Kobbie Mainoo to not believe the hype that he is the “finished article” and to focus on improving amid negotiations over the teenager’s future at Manchester United.

The 19-year-old midfielder, whose contract runs until 2027 with the option of another year, has been a regular for United since progressing to the first team from the academy and is seeking an increase on his £20,000-per-week (€24,000) salary.

Mainoo’s partnership with Manuel Ugarte has given cause for optimism and the duo could start together again today as United travel to Arsenal, where Amorim suffered the first defeat of his reign, in the third round of the FA Cup.

“I think Kobbie Mainoo is improving a lot during the last matches, I think you guys [the media] feel like Kobbie Mainoo is the finished product — he is not, he has so much potential to grow up even more,” Amorim said.

“He is really, really good but he can be so much better. I think he is improving, all the players are improving, all the players are important for me, no matter what.”

United are not actively trying to sell Mainoo but would be open to a substantial offer that could help United comply with profitability and sustainability rules.

United are the FA Cup holders after beating Manchester City in last season’s final. It was enough for Erik ten Hag to keep his job in the short term but continuing poor league form into this season led to his demise.

Today will be Amorim’s first taste of the competition, and it will be a rude introduction against Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal at the Emirates.

The Portuguese head coach has been learning about United’s history by watching documentaries about the club, including one on how Alex Ferguson’s job was saved by winning a third-round match at Nottingham Forest and going on to lift the trophy in 1989-’90.

Asked how the FA Cup can provide a springboard for his tenure, Amorim replied: “Because of the feeling of winning, that feeling gives you so much confidence. If you win one thing you believe that you can win more, then that feeling is addictive. You feel it and then it’s really easy to follow that to try to win it again.”

United have won the FA Cup 13 times — twice since Ferguson left in 2013 — and Amorim, eager to progress in the competition, will not heavily rotate his side but will grant goalkeeper Altay Bayindir a rare start.

United have enjoyed a free midweek since Sunday’s draw at Liverpool and Amorim is eager to find his best XI and build momentum after a difficult run of five defeats in seven Premier League matches.

“The best team depends on them [the players],” Amorim said. “But you can see that the rotation is different now. For example, Manu [Ugarte] is playing more than Casemiro. You can see that some of the guys are winning more the position but for me, the position is always open. It depends on the way they play and the way they train. So I think we are closer [to finding the best XI].

“We have more time [together], we have the games, the evaluation of the games. And now with the small training that we have you can understand better the players and the way you want to play.”

“Sometimes it’s not to choose the best player in the team, it’s the best player that can do the position the way I see it, so we are closer.”

- Will Unwin

I'M REALLY HAPPY WITH KOBBIE - RUBEN AMORIM

Ruben Amorim insisted he wants to hang on to Kobbie Mainoo amid speculation Manchester United are willing to offload the teenage midfielder this month.

Mainoo still has two-and-a-half years left to run on his contract but United have little wiggle room to buy players in the January transfer window because of profit and sustainability (PSR) regulations.

It has been reported United are prepared to listen to offers for anyone in their squad and, as a homegrown player, the sale of Mainoo, who has been linked with Chelsea, could significantly help the balance sheet.

Kobbie Mainoo has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford (Peter Byrne/PA)

But while Amorim did not offer any guarantees, the United head coach, whose side take on Arsenal in the FA Cup third round on Sunday, indicated his main focus is on retaining his key figures at Old Trafford.

“My players are always my favourites, I really love my players and I want to keep them, especially the talented ones,” Amorim said. “I’m really happy with Kobbie – he is improving.

“Our idea is always to keep the best players. We know the position that the club is in this moment. I’m very happy and I really like our players, especially the guys from the academy.”

While 19-year-old Mainoo is growing into an increasingly important figure under Amorim, Marcus Rashford, another academy graduate, has been marginalised since the Portuguese took control of United.

Rashford last month admitted he was ready for a “new challenge” and the latest reports surrounding his future suggest he could be loaned to West Ham for the remainder of the season.

Marcus Rashford has been linked with West Ham (Martin Rickett/PA)

Asked whether Rashford, who was absent for last weekend’s 2-2 draw at Liverpool because of illness but is available to face the Gunners, still has a future at United if he is loaned out, Amorim was guarded.

“We will see,” Amorim said. “Let’s focus on the game.”

United arrested a three-game losing run by collecting a point at Anfield but they are still nervously looking over their shoulders in the Premier League, sitting 13th in the table, seven points above the drop zone.

They will briefly put aside their top-flight problems this weekend, although they have been given a stern first outing as defending FA Cup champions with a trip to 14-time winners Arsenal.

“I will choose the best team to win because we want to win the cup,” Amorim, who confirmed Altay Bayindir will feature ahead of regular goalkeeper Andre Onana at the Emirates Stadium, said.

Altay Bayindir will start against Arsenal (Mike Egerton/PA)

“We are in a difficult moment, we are improving. We have won some cups and we want to continue and we know at this stage we have a really strong match that we want to win.”

United go into the clash having lost their last four matches against Arsenal, who eased to a 2-0 win over Amorim’s side last month courtesy of goals from Jurrien Timber and William Saliba.

Amorim highlighted Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard as one of their instrumental performers.

“I think he’s really special,” Amorim added. “His influence on Arsenal is impressive. When he’s playing, Arsenal is a different team but they can win and lose with or without Odegaard.

“I expect a strong team. If Odegaard is in their team, they will be stronger, for sure.”

- David Charlesworth, Pa

MANCHESTER UNITED HIT A HISTORIC LOW

MANCHESTER, England -- There has been a simmering discontent at Manchester United for a while now, but at Old Trafford on Monday night the dial was turned up to near mutiny in a loss to Newcastle United.

With just 30 minutes gone and Man United already 2-0 down, Joshua Zirkzee was substituted by head coach Ruben Amorim. Any of the 11 players could have been replaced -- they were all that bad in a shocking first half hour -- but it was Zirkzee who bore the brunt from the irate supporters in the stands.

When Zirkzee's number went up, there were loud cheers around the stadium. The Dutchman, only signed from Bologna in the summer, grabbed his coat and jogged down the tunnel to scattered jeers. He emerged again moments later to take his place on the bench. When the half-time whistle blew, there were boos from all four sides of Old Trafford. There were more at full-time, although by then a large number of the fans who turned up had long since decided it was time to go home.

It's now four straight defeats for Man United and six in their past eight games. For the first time since the 1978-79 season, they've lost three consecutive league games at Old Trafford. Three Premier League defeats in a row mean they will start 2025 in 14th, just seven points above the drop zone.

Man United's woes have reached the point where Amorim is being asked about the possibility of relegation.

"It is really hard on everybody and you can feel it," Amorim said after the 2-0 loss. "We show some improvement in the first games especially against [Manchester] City and Tottenham but we are losing that because of the lack of training and belief after so many losses. It is a really tough moment for everybody.

"It is a bit embarrassing to be Manchester United coach and lose a lot of games. I think our club needs a shock and we have to understand that."

There was little shock that Newcastle were by far the better team and deserved to win their first league game at Old Trafford for more than a decade. Man United managed to calm some of the anger with a more competent second-half performance, but by then the damage had already been done.

Alexander Isak scored for the sixth game in a row after just four minutes to make it 1-0. Before 20 minutes had elapsed, Joelinton made it 2-0. It could have been much worse. Isak had a goal ruled out through offside, and Sandro Tonali hit the post when he should have scored.

Only then did Zirkzee come off. He was replaced by Kobbie Mainoo and Man United finally turned up to play. By half-time, Newcastle had taken 11 shots at André Onana's goal. As the game drifted towards its conclusion, the travelling Newcastle fans sang, "You're getting sacked in the morning," at Amorim.

After the initial optimism of his arrival to replace Erik ten Hag in November, it has been a bruising December for the Portuguese coach with Premier League defeats to Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Wolves and now Newcastle. Man United haven't lost five league games in a calendar month since 1962.

Throw in the Carabao Cup defeat to Tottenham and it's six losses in all competitions, a low point not seen since September 1930. For the first time in more than 100 years, a Manchester United manager has lost five of their first eight league games.

Casemiro, left, and Harry Maguire react with anguish in Manchester United's latest loss on Monday, this time to Newcastle United in Premier League play. Martin Rickett/PA Images via Getty Images

The question, though, is whether it's Amorim or the players who should be shouldering the blame. For now, Amorim is refusing to criticise his squad despite further evidence week after week that the majority are not good enough.

He's routinely peppered with questions about his 3-4-3 system and whether he will -- eventually -- have to adapt. But his formation had nothing to do with Isak having a free header six yards out after getting in between Harry Maguire and Lisandro Martínez to head past Onana.

It had nothing to do with Joelinton bulldozing Martinez out of the way to head in the second. It had nothing to do with all the missed tackles and missed passes.

"I am responsible," said Amorim. "I don't like to arrive here and make excuses. I think people are tired of excuses in this club. I never watch a coach winning games by not protecting the players. What I have to say to the players I say in the dressing room. "I have to sell my idea. If I change all the time it is going to be even worse. It is a very difficult moment and we have to fight for the next game and to also have a performance."

Writing in his programme notes ahead of the game, Amorim said he had "no doubt" that the run of miserable form "will not last forever." It is, however, unlikely to end immediately with United scheduled to visit runaway leaders Liverpool next weekend.

Defeat at Anfield would send Amorim and his players deeper into the mire. The anger is already deepening, the mood worsening by the day.

Even for a club that has made a habit of lurching from crisis to crisis, United are reaching new levels of despair.

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

KOBBIE MAINOO STATS SO FAR

 

ERIK TEN HAG: MAN UTD NEED TO BOUNCE BACK AGAINST PORTO

 

Erik ten Hag has come under pressure following Manchester United's dismal start to the season. Getty

PORTO, Portugal -- Erik ten Hag has insisted he retains the faith of Manchester United's leadership, but admitted his players must show a reaction to the defeat to Tottenham when they play FC Porto.

Ten Hag has come under severe pressure following the chastening 3-0 defeat to Spurs on Sunday.

The Dutchman has revealed he's held conversations with the club's leadership team since the result, which left United 13th in the Premier League table.

He will lead his team in their Europa League tie against Porto at Estadio do Dragao on Thursday and admitted his players must bounce back quickly to brighten the mood around the club.

"We talk every day," Ten Hag told a news conference on Wednesday. "It's a long-term project. It's a long-term union. We will keep going in that process. We will talk every day. Every day we will evaluate, review the process and where it's necessary, we will make our decisions.

"As always when we are not winning, we are very disappointed and we are also mad, mad with ourselves and especially when you lose a game like Sunday.

"We are mad and from the madness we have to get motivation and go onto the next game."

CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Dan Ashworth both publicly backed Ten Hag before the defeat to Liverpool in early September.

Sources have told ESPN that despite the run of poor form, the club intend to stick with the 54-year-old until at least after Sunday's trip to Aston Villa on Sunday.

Ten Hag was asked whether United's leadership had privately offered a vote of confidence since the defeat to Tottenham, but the former Ajax coach told reporters it was not needed.

"It's not necessary to give me confidence," he said.

"We talk every day about how we can improve this club and this team. How we can co-operate, how can we improve the processes; that is what we are talking about."

While Porto warmed up for United with a 4-0 win over Arouca Sunday, Ten Hag's team are on a three-match winless run. But Porto coach Vitor Bruno is adamant it's not a good time to play their Premier League visitors.

"I know what you mean, talking about the last match," Bruno said. "But no, not at all. Exactly the opposite. We always see them as a threat. I've heard a lot of people saying that he was coming with a rope around his neck but it would be a huge mistake [to underestimate them]. We are talking about world-class players."

Kobbie Mainoo is set to be available to face Porto despite limping off during the first half against Spurs. The England midfielder trained at Carrington on Wednesday morning, but Mason Mount was absent after suffering a head injury against Tottenham.

United's trip to Portugal on Wednesday afternoon was delayed because of fog in Porto leading to Ten Hag's news conference being delayed for more than two hours.

- Rob Dawson, Correspondent

SOUTHGATE'S BOLD, BELATED SUBS FIRE ENGLAND TO EURO 2024 FINAL

Gareth Southgate's 81st-minute substitutions sparked England to a late Euro 2024 semifinal win over the Netherlands on Wednesday. Ian MacNicol/Getty Images

 DORTMUND, Germany -- Gareth Southgate finally broke the pattern.

England's Euro 2024 semifinal against the Netherlands was threatening to drift away from them in the style of previous tournament exits since the 53-year-old manager took charge in 2016. After being dominated in a first half that ended tied at 1-1, Dutch boss Ronald Koeman changed his approach at half-time, sending on Wout Weghorst, closing up the spaces Bukayo Saka, Phil Foden and Kobbie Mainoo had been exploiting and asked a different question of England and Southgate.

For a while, it flummoxed them. England had nine shots in Wednesday's 2-1 win but none between the 41st minute and 87th. Southgate waited a long time before making his move.

Memories of Croatia in 2018, France in 2022 and even the previous Euros final in between -- which England lost on penalties -- began to resurface as Southgate seemed unable to reverse the momentum ebbing away from his side.

The conversations he has on the touchline with trusted assistant Steve Holland can seem interminable. There is no doubt other managers are more proactive, instinctive even.

But having been largely forced into bringing on Luke Shaw at half-time as Kieran Trippier suffered a groin problem that makes him a doubt for Sunday's final, Southgate's double change with 10 minutes to go was, eventually, bold.

Harry Kane is England's all-time leading goal scorer and captain, but despite scoring the first-half penalty that cancelled out Xavi Simons' sublime opener, he was flatfooted, tired and far too easy to mark. Southgate suggested afterward that the Denzel Dumfries challenge on Kane, which led to his penalty, had left a mark on the forward.

Foden was also caught in the wider malaise but had been so dangerous in the first half, having a shot cleared off the line before hitting the post from long range. Taking them both off for Ollie Watkins and Cole Palmer was not an easy call given their reputations and standings, but it was the right one.

Palmer fired over in the 88th minute but then played a clever pass through for Watkins, who turned Stefan de Vrij and fired a stunning shot across Dutch goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen and just inside his right-hand post. Cue pandemonium.

Somewhere in the maelstrom, Southgate reacted by introducing Conor Gallagher and Ezri Konsa to see out stoppage-time and spark more jubilant scenes at full-time. After allowing the players to take centre stage in front of the euphoric England supporters, Southgate took a moment to celebrate passionately in front of them.

This is a tournament campaign that has been blighted by fitness issues from the outset and heavy criticism from supporters throughout. Now, beer was being thrown in the air, not at Southgate.

"We all want to be loved, right? When you are doing something for your country and you are a proud Englishman, when you don't feel that back and all you read is criticism, it is hard," Southgate said after the match. "To be able to celebrate a second final is very, very special. Especially the fans that travel.

"Our travelling support is amazing, the money they spend, the commitment to do that, to be able to give them a night like this -- and we have given them a few over the last six years from Russia onwards -- it means a lot. If I hadn't been on the grass, I'd have been watching, celebrating like they were.

"We're kindred spirits in many ways. Of course, I'm the one that has to pick a team. To be able to give them a night like tonight is very, very special."

England's opening 45 minutes was the best football they have produced all tournament. Admittedly, the bar for that was pretty low after a series of underwhelming displays, but there was an energy and dynamism about them after Simons' superb seventh-minute strike put the Netherlands in front.

Kane's equaliser came from a penalty that could only really have been awarded in the VAR era, but England were good value for it until the Netherlands shut the game down, making this a similar watch to England's stifled displays against Denmark, Slovenia, Slovakia and Switzerland in particular.

"They were a three-box-three in the second half so we weren't able to be quite as incisive in the second half but we kept the ball really well and made them run," Southgate said. "Maybe in the end, that's the bit that's fatigued them and has been critical in the goal that we scored. There was a lot going on in the game. In the end, it is the players who make the decisions on the pitch, and they did it brilliantly."

Of course, the cycle will only truly be broken if England can go all the way and win their first major men's honour since 1966. This is not a vintage Netherlands side and England have, once again, benefitted from a kinder half of the draw. Final opponents Spain look in the sort of form to give England by some distance their toughest match this summer.

Southgate was asked about the prospect of beating Spain. "We'll have to get the ball off them first," began his reply.

But having scrambled for answers all tournament -- changing Declan Rice's midfield partner three times, switching systems from a back four to a three-man defence -- Southgate came up with the game-changing moment when it really mattered.

It may be a one-off. Criticisms of him will remain, despite a tournament record that now reads: semifinal, final, quarterfinal, final. But England are now in a position where Southgate only needs to be right one more time to achieve immortality.

LIVERPOOL MISS CHANCE TO GO TOP AFTER DRAW WITH MAN UNITED

Mohamed Salah scored a late equaliser from a penalty as Liverpool escaped Old Trafford with a point in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United on Sunday to end the weekend second in the Premier League table.

Salah stroked home in the 84th minute for his sixth league goal at Old Trafford, the most of any visiting player in the league's history, overtaking Steven Gerrard's five.

With seven games remaining in the neck-and-neck title race, Liverpool and Arsenal have 71 points with Mikel Arteta's team leading on goal difference. Reigning champions Manchester City are third on 70 points, while United are sixth.

Luis Díaz got Liverpool on the scoreboard in the  minute when Dominik Szoboszlai swung in a corner that Darwin Nunez headed to the unmarked Colombian who hooked in a volley from close range.

But Bruno Fernandes scored a wild goal -- the United skipper's 50th league goal for the side -- with their first shot on target in the 50th minute when he latched on to a loose Liverpool pass and lobbed the ball from the centre circle past keeper Caoimhin Kelleher.

Kobbie Mainoo had the Old Trafford faithful roaring with his rocket from just inside the 18-yard box that sailed into the far top corner in the 67th minute. The 18-year-old sprinted to the corner flag to salute the crowd.

Liverpool were awarded their penalty when Harvey Elliott was taken down in the box. 

- ESPN

MAN UNITED TEENAGE MIDFIELDER KOBBIE MAINOO GETS FIRST CALL-UP BY ENGLAND

AP Photo 

 LONDON (AP) — Manchester United teenager Kobbie Mainoo's swift rise to prominence could yet see the midfielder play for England in high-profile friendlies against Brazil and Belgium in the coming days.

The 18-year-old Mainoo received his first call-up by England on Tuesday, his latest step in a breakthrough season that could yet end with a place in his country's squad for the European Championship in Germany across June and July.

Mainoo had been selected for England's Under-21s but was added to Gareth Southgate’s senior group ahead of games against Brazil on Saturday and Belgium on Tuesday, both at Wembley Stadium.

AP Photo

Mainoo, who previously represented England Under-17s and Under-19s, has played with maturity and composure in racking up 20 appearances so far for United this season.

The midfielder joined United at age nine and made his debut in early 2023 in a League Cup game against Charlton.

Mainoo is also eligible for Ghana and its football association has previously expressed interest in calling him up.

England's stock of high-quality central midfielders is currently low, with Kalvin Phillips — a long-time favorite of Southgate's — dropped for the latest squad and Jordan Henderson a fading force. Declan Rice looks to be a certainty for England in that position but Mainoo could yet force his way into the team alongside him, and behind attacking midfielder Jude Bellingham, for Euro 2024.

Southgate announced his squad for the friendlies last week and all the players called up by the coach reported to the training camp on Tuesday.

Among them was Brentford striker Ivan Toney, who was recalled after serving an eight-month ban for breaching betting rules.

Also receiving their first summons were Everton defender Jarrad Branthwaite and Newcastle forward Anthony Gordon.

Liverpool defender Joe Gomez was called up for the first time since 2020 but there was no place for Phillips, who has endured a difficult start to his loan spell with West Ham from Manchester City.

KOBBIE MAINOO | FEBRUARY BUDWISER GOAL OF THE MONTH AWARD