Manchester United hit a new low under manager Ruben Amorim, suffering a historic 1-0 defeat to a 10-man Everton side at Old Trafford. The loss, which saw United booed off the pitch, prompted fierce criticism from Sky Sports pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher, who questioned the team’s complacency and the manager’s stubborn tactics.
Everton became the first team in Premier League history to win at Old Trafford after having a player sent off, with Idrissa Gueye’s first-half red card preceding Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s winning goal.
Neville: Performance “Smelt of Complacency”
Gary Neville did not hold back in his assessment, stating the performance would “erode trust” in the team and the manager just as they seemed to be building momentum.
“It just smelt of complacency. They weren’t at it from the beginning. That is a bad one for United,” Neville said on his podcast. “You can’t go from the fight that they showed in certain games to that. It just erodes confidence, it erodes trust.”
Neville refused to accept injuries to key forwards as an excuse, emphasizing the lack of fight. “Forget [injuries], there are no excuses. I’m not entertaining that one bit. Everton dominated them with 11 men and with 10 men.”
Carragher: “A Bad Night for the Manager”
Jamie Carragher placed significant blame on Amorim for his failure to adapt his system after Everton went down to 10 men. The manager persisted with a three-man defence, which Carragher saw as a critical error.
“This is a bad night for the manager,” Carragher stated. “I don’t understand how you can stick with something so steadfastly… It’s one of those moments where I think a lot of people will really question the manager on the back of that defeat.”
Amorim’s In-Game Decisions Under Fire
Neville was also critical of Amorim’s substitutions and the lack of urgency from his players, specifically calling out defender Luke Shaw.
“[Shaw] is ambling, you can’t do that. He should be running forward every single time, I don’t care,” Neville commented during the match. On the decision to bring on Diogo Dalot, he added, “Ruben Amorim has a question to answer. Bringing Dalot on over there in front of Shaw? I don’t quite see it. You have five at the back, why?… Embarrassing.”
The defeat leaves Manchester United in 10th place, and the nature of the performance has raised serious questions about the team’s mentality and the manager’s tactical flexibility just a few months into his tenure.
