Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim delivered a scathing assessment of his team's performance after they conceded a late lead to draw 2-2 with Tottenham Hotspur in a Premier League thriller.
Dramatic Finish Masks United's Problems
In a match of wild momentum swings, United looked set for defeat after surrendering their first-half lead, only for Matthijs de Ligt's 96th-minute header to salvage a point. The Dutch defender's late intervention ensured United extended their unbeaten run to five games, but couldn't disguise what Amorim saw as fundamental flaws in his team's approach.
The United boss expressed serious concerns about his squad's mentality, accusing them of becoming "too comfortable" after taking control of the match. "We have a lot of problems, we are just in the beginning," Amorim stated bluntly in his post-match press conference.
Amorim's Blunt Assessment
Despite United controlling large periods of the game after Bryan Mbeumo's opening goal, they were overhauled by second-half strikes from Mathys Tel and Richarlison before De Ligt's dramatic equaliser. Amorim pinpointed his team's failure to maintain intensity as the core issue.
"I know sometimes the results show people that we are improving: we are improving but we have a lot to do," he admitted. "We were comfortable in the game but I think we should do better, be more aggressive, feeling the environment in the stadium."
The Portuguese manager emphasised that his team needed to recognise when matches were there to be won. "I think we felt too comfortable during the game. We need to expect that in one play anything can happen and change the mood of the stadium, and today was that."
Injury Concern and Frank's Substitution Defence
United faced further concern when substitute Benjamin Sesko appeared to suffer a knee problem during the second half. "We think he has a problem but let's see," Amorim said regarding the forward's condition.
Meanwhile, Tottenham manager Thomas Frank defended his substitutions after facing jeers from home supporters when he replaced Xavi Simons with Mathys Tel in the 79th minute. The decision proved inspired as Tel scored the equalising goal just five minutes later.
"Sometimes you're lucky," Frank acknowledged. "But I would say that every single time I take a decision to sub a player it's with one aim: try to win the game. And no doubt [Tel] did well, got the goal, a great moment."
The Spurs boss also received significant contributions from other substitutes, with Wilson Odobert and Destiny Ugodie both providing assists after coming off the bench.
Despite Tottenham's ongoing struggle for home victories - their last league win at their stadium came against Burnley on 16 August - Frank remained positive about his team's direction. "I know we need to win before we don't talk about [the home form]," he conceded.
"But the way we turned it around to stay in the game, I'm very, very happy with that. So close to winning it, and every other day we win it. Overall it was a good performance against a good Manchester United team that's definitely in flow."
