Defender insists players must take responsibility for the team\u2019s poor start
\n LONDON
\nMatthijs de Ligt insists Manchester United\u2019s players \u201cstand behind\u201d beleaguered boss Ruben Amorim and deserve the blame for the club\u2019s calamitous start to the season.
\nAmorim\u2019s side needed a last-gasp penalty from Bruno Fernandes to beat promoted Burnley 3-2 on Saturday after twice blowing the lead at Old Trafford.
\nUnited\u2019s first Premier League win in three games this term came just days after a humiliating League Cup second round loss at fourth tier Grimsby.
\nAmorim had admitted after the stunning cup defeat that he sometimes thinks about quitting United and often hates his players.
\nWith speculation still swirling about Amorim\u2019s future despite the much-needed victory over Burnley, United defender De Ligt backed his boss.
\n\u201cI think the only thing that counted was a win,\u201d he said. \u201cEverybody saw how. We know we could have done that better, but the win was the most important thing.\u201d
\nAsked if he wanted Amorim to stay, De Ligt added: \u201cYeah, of course. I mean, as a player you are responsible for the results.
\n\u201cThey always speak about the manager, obviously, but I think as players we also looked at each other in the eye after Grimsby and said to each other \u2018guys, the performance of this week is not acceptable\u2019.
\n\u201cIt will be really, I think, bad to say that it\u2019s the manager\u2019s fault or… it\u2019s mostly us, and we know that.
\n\u201cSo, yeah, obviously we still stand behind him, and he stands behind us, so we keep going like that. I think the result for today makes that feeling even more.\u201d
\nDe Ligt was sporting a black eye from Wednesday\u2019s battle with Grimsby, which ended in a penalty shoot-out loss after United recovered from two goals down in normal time.
\nDe Ligt said the embarrassing result had not been discussed among the team at length because it was too painful.
\n\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s much been said because everybody knows how the feeling was,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cI think everybody from outside could also understand what the feeling is if you lose a game like that.
\n\u201cSo, yeah, it\u2019s not easy. We know that. We were really disappointed, in ourselves especially, so then to win today was I think the only cure that could a little bit help the defeat of Wednesday.\u201d
\nUnited hardly looked a cohesive unit against Burnley, with careless defending and poor goalkeeping twice allowing the visitors to draw level.
\nBut Fernandes\u2019 latest heroics in a United shirt kept the critics at bay heading into the international break.
\nAmorim will face a major test of his job security when Premier League action resumes for United at rivals Manchester City on September 14 before they host in-form Chelsea six days later.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Defender insists players must take responsibility for the team\u2019s poor start LONDON Matthijs de Ligt insists Manchester United\u2019s players \u201cstand behind\u201d beleaguered boss Ruben Amorim and deserve the blame for the club\u2019s calamitous start to the season. Amorim\u2019s side needed a last-gasp penalty from Bruno Fernandes to beat promoted Burnley 3-2 on Saturday after twice […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":500337,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-500319","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n