In just his fourth game in charge, Ruben Amorim said his Manchester United side were hard done by with two set pieces against Arsenal and has emphasized their lack of work in the training ground for it. The Gunners scored two goals in the second half on Wednesday night, both coming from their trademark corner kick routines. William Saliba and Jurian Timber both netted headers each with Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice’s undefendable deliveries from concerns. This, unfortunately, handed Amorim his first defeat with Manchester United.
Despite losing, the 39-year-old had already foreshadowed such a scenario by reminding the fans repeatedly that the “storm will come” and demanding patience from them. United put on a decent defensive display in the first half and limited Arsenal to very little from open play.
However, they couldn’t handle the North Londoners' corner kick routines, which have proven so effective for the title challengers this season. 22 of their 28 goals this season in the Premier League have come from corners, and it’s clear it’s something they’ve mastered.
Ruben Amorim responds to Manchester United's defeat against Arsenal
Ruben Amorim is crystal clear that he has a lot of work to do despite being just four games into his new job. They showed promise against Everton in a 4-0 win and had many positives against Arsenal in the first half. Still, the Gunners came to the fore in the second half with two deadly set-piece routines and United were second-best after the interval.
Amorim said after the match (via GOAL):
"Tough game. We tried to play our game, especially in the first half. We need more trainings. The set pieces change everything, change the momentum. It was really hard for them. We tried, but we had two set pieces and didn’t score. They scored.”
“We have to understand that they have years of doing that [set pieces]. Even when you are here for so long, you can see how their set pieces can change that. We tried to defend them in the space of two days to train.”
“I learned that we are smart when we have the strategy. We are finding the way to press and the way to block. We will be better in time. We have to improve every minute. We have to use every minute to try to improve and fight for the games.”
Amorim emphasized how his team is slowly improving each game, both on and off the ball, and how his team should be doing better defending set pieces despite Arsenal's set-piece brilliance. The Portuguese has highlighted how his United side is on the right track and where they have to improve even further.
The Red Devils are up against Nottingham Forest at Old Trafford as they look to get back on track, sitting 11th in the Premier League table.