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WEDNESDAY | SEPT 17, 2025

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Disappointed Devils Fernandes, Mazraoui accept Man Utd display ‘not good enough’

B RUNO FERNANDES and Noussair Mazraoui both acknowledged Manchester United were not good enough after Ruben Amorim’s stumbling side lost Monday’s derby at Manchester City. Things have rarely been straightforward since Sir Alex Ferguson retired and scrutiny is intensifying on the position of the Red Devils’ sixth permanent man ager since the Scot left in 2013. Amorim oversaw United’s worst top-flight season in 51 years and Sunday’s 3-0 derby defeat at City left them on just four points after four Premier League matches this term, compounding their Carabao Cup humiliation at Grimsby. The defiant Portuguese said the club will have to sack him before he changes his philosophy follow ing Monday’s loss at the Etihad Stadium, where captain Fernandes acknowledged the side were below par. “You have to look at what we did well,” he told Sky Sports . “It was obviously not enough because you want to win football games, not see the positives from the game. “What we did here was not enough to get the result. All we have to got to take from this game is obviously to look at what we need to do better and go forward to the next game. “We need to score goals and not to concede. It is the main thing

of football.

match on his podcast, targeted United’s midfielders, particularly Uruguayan midfielder Manuel Ugarte, stating he isn’t fit to wear the club’s shirt despite his hefty transfer fee, which could cost up to £50 million (RM290m) “The midfield is a massive problem, and we’ve known that. United fans know that,“ the former United defender remarked. During his post-match press conference, Amorim appeared defiant when questioned about why he hasn’t modified his tactical approach despite the club’s clearly disappointing results. Remarks made by former United manager Jose Mourinho earlier this year have now come back into focus, with the Portuguese boss criticising any head coach who refuses to adapt. “There are coaches who try things that don’t work and fail, but they say, ‘I died with my idea.’ “If you die with your idea, you’re stupid. Coaches have to adapt their ideas to what they have,” Mourinho stated. Amorim’s press conference declaration perhaps fits under Mourinho’s widely-shared obser vation, as he insisted: “I won’t change my philosophy. “If they (the United hierarchy) want it changed, you change the man. I am not going to change my philosophy. I will play my way until I want to change.” – The Independent/Express Newspapers

to put things right as last season’s failures mean they are without European foot ball for the first time since 2014-15. Chelsea, and recently departed academy gradu ate Alejandro Garnacho, are the visitors this week end and Mazraoui says they have to learn from the City setback. “It is always hard to say (where it went wrong) because of course you are always full of emotion

“We keep creating chances to score and we are not able to score as many as we wanted. We have to be more in control of certain situa tions. We conceded three goals that should have been avoided.” Versatile United defender Mazraoui echoed the skipper’s sentiments after his first start of the season ended in disappointment. “We’re in an important season, of course,” he told MUTV . “In the start of the season still. “We try to improve as a team, especially after everything that hap pened. But, yeah, a derby

Man United’s Noussair Mazraoui (left) and Bruno Fernandes react at the end of the English Premier League match against Man City at the Etihad Stadium. – AFPPIC

straight after the game,” Mazraoui said. “I always try

to calm down and try to analyse the game of course and then see really what went wrong because otherwise I am just going to point fingers, but probably eventually it’s not even the guys or something that I point out now. “I am going to analyse that for myself, I think we are going to analyse as a team and then try to improve.” Former cap tain Gary Neville, dissecting the

makes it even more spe cial, more emo tional.

“If you lose and you’ve played good and you have the chances that we created the last games, you can maybe accept it because they’re still improving. But today was just not good enough.” United have to wait until Sunday (12.30am Malaysian time)

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