MUFC manager Ruben Amorim seeks to end his search for his first back-to-back league victories as he takes his United side to the greatest foe. Should he manage to end that duck at Anfield, what a statement that would be.
The United boss spoke about his support from the board, the rivalry with LFC, his new shot-stopper and team news ahead of the big game this Sunday.
Ruben Amorim confirms that he "feels the support everyday" in terms of the backing from the club. He says that he puts more pressure on himself and that it "helps our fans understand that the leadership knows it will take time." But it's not a feeling that he wants to linger as while it may take longer than we'd all like to see the club where it needs to be, Amorim doesn't want us to believe that "we have time to work things out."
Amorim admits that co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe even messages him after games although the most important thing is focusing on the following match.
I think we all knew that Amorim was already backed. Some would say the fact that he's still here is a sign of support from the club but it really was that Ratcliffe interview last week saying that Amorim needs three years to prove himself. That for me, admitted that he will be manager for the rest of this season at least.
It is good for the manager to feel the board's support but I feel like with Ruben, there doesn't seem to be as much pressure on him from the club compared to those of the past. There appears to be a calmness about his future that weirdly, doesn't sit right with me. I almost want to see that he looks like he's concerned that 'the end is nigh' yet every time I see him, he doesn't look like a manager who is the worst in United's history since WWII.
I do agree though, that things will take time but we cannot think we have all the time in the world. We need to start imporving and quickly.
The MUFC boss said that his side "played really well" in this fixture last season and that he was really upset afterwards because it showed that they can compete with the best teams.
Amorim said that the reason as to why his team might perform in these bigger games is because the pressure is off. As United come into these matches as underdogs, no one expects anything of them. This can allow his players to perform with more freedom.
He is absolutely spot on!
This is something we've all said for a while that whenever the onus is on United, we crumble. We know that we have the tendency to show up in these bigger games because everyone expects Liverpool, Arsenal, City to beat us.
I believe in this game last season, we played the best under Amorim. Unlike Arsenal at the start of this campaign, we were at home and no one is really in their stride on opening day, which made things slightly easier as the Gunners were a bit flat. Yet they won all the same.
At Anfield last year, it was away from home and against a team that was well in their stride and they happen to be our greatest rivals. We were also going into it off of the back of three straight losses without scoring so to go to Liverpool, play like we did and get a deserved draw, it was the best we've played under the Portuguese.
When the roles are reversed, that's when we struggle.
This is a mentality issue and shows that too many of our players can't handle the pressure and responsibility of playing for United. It's not just about the big matches but also the seemingly less significant ones. To have this inconsistent mindset is why we have failed for so long.
The manager wants to see consistently good performances from his young goalkeeper Lammens after an impressive debut last time out and hinted that he could start on Sunday but that nothing is impossible with the potential for Bayindir to make a return. "He is not Schmeichel yet. He is a young guy with talent."
He also provided us with the team news as Amorim confirms that Martinez will still be out but is unsure about Mazraoui after he picked up an injury a few weeks ago. However, while they weren't seen in training, the players who were on international duty (Amad, Casemiro, Cunha) are ready to play.
Ruben Amorim | Creator: Gareth Copley | Credit: Getty Images Copyright: 2025 Getty Images via Goal