Home>soccerNews> Mazraoui's injury is not in the way of Manchester United's relegation battle! Amorim reminded Rajue that the layoffs should be more for the better >
Mazraoui's injury is not in the way of Manchester United's relegation battle! Amorim reminded Rajue that the layoffs should be more for the better

Manchester United will host third-from-bottom Ipswich Town at Old Trafford on Wednesday. The Reds are currently 13 points ahead of their opponents and a win over Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's former assistant Keerong McKenna's side would be a crucial step towards securing relegation. 15th in the Premier League against 18th in the Premier League, it is not an exaggeration to say that this is a relegation battle. Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim revealed before the game that the squad will be the same as the last round at Everton, with no new injuries and no one returning.

That means United will still have nine first-team players out injured: Altay Baindil, Tom Heaton, Evans, Lisandro Martinez, Luke Shaw, Toby Collier, Kobe Maynor, Mason Mount and Amad Diallo. However, Mazraoui, who retired with a right knee injury to Everton, was confirmed to be eligible after a medical on Monday. Asked about United's personnel, Amorim responded: "I think the squad is the same, no players are back for this game, but the injuries are improving.

Seventeen-year-old centre-forward Sido Obi is expected to make his home debut, but may not be playing for much longer as he returns to his former club Arsenal in two days with Manchester United's under-18 team for the FA Youth Cup quarter-finals at the Emirates Stadium, where he has scored seven goals in three games.

Manchester United were still criticised for their performance despite holding Everton to a 2-2 draw on Saturday, with Alan Shearer bluntly admiring the Reds' pressing was rather poor. Amorim accepted: "It's hard to accept when you watch the game, I know, you know, even the players know that we don't have enough intensity. In the second half we improved, but it wasn't much, it was just the details of the fight for the second spot, we didn't lose the ball without being forced and we were more aggressive both defensively and offensively. We changed the energy of the game. But I understand all the criticism, and if you've watched the game, you can just accept it and try to change it."

Opponents Ipswich Town have not won at Old Trafford since 1984, although they held United to a 1-1 draw at home on Amorim's debut in charge. United have lost five of their recent six Premier League games at Old Trafford, with Amorim enjoying just two league wins at the Theatre of Dreams.

However, Amorim denied that United were under more pressure at home. "Since I've been here, when I took the job, I wanted to win all the home games, we had that feeling. I didn't feel any extra pressure, the fans were amazing and every time you go to Old Trafford you feel supported until the end of the game. Sometimes a tie, or at half-time, you can feel the desire of the fans. So I don't feel pressured. We have to stop thinking about the last game, it's a new game, it can be a new story, so let's push forward in the game."

Manchester United announced this week that they will be cutting staff again, and Sir Jim Ratcliffe has also cut benefits for employees, such as free lunches, just to serve the first-team stars. Amorim says United players have to take responsibility for their colleagues' job losses, but they won't feel the pressure as a result. 'It's clear that of course we have to solve all the problems of the club, but the most important thing now is to understand how we got into this situation. It has a lot to do with the lack of success, we are the engine. I just want to help improve the team, improve the quality of the players and be successful." Amorim said.

But he added: "It's also hard for everybody, they see their friends and team-mates lose their jobs and we have to focus again on what we can do to help the club and as a club we have to understand what we did wrong to cause this and we have to come up with a solution. It's hard to win games and we know it's been hard for everyone this year, there's been a lot of changes at the club and when you do that, if the team is doing well and winning the game, to a certain extent, it's easier for the fans to accept those changes. But the club and the team are not doing well and we have to fight that feeling and at the moment we are doing our best."

Amorim further said: "The players don't feel the pressure of people losing their jobs, they only have one life, they live in a 'bubble'. It's completely different for them and for me and everyone in the club. I'm not saying it's a bad thing, they're young kids living in different worlds, but they're under different pressures and sometimes tougher. The pressure is on them to win for Manchester United and every time we lose or they don't perform, people talk about them, their friends, their social media and celebrities. People make it personal, and sometimes it's hard for individual players to turn things around. They went out on the pitch to solve the problem, but in the wrong way, they thought too much and didn't play the way they should."

Amorim also hinted that Rajue is saving money through layoffs, but more importantly to buy and sell wisely in the transfer market. 'We have to improve our signings, and that's crucial. We need to be a better team and not make too many mistakes in this area. The people who have been made redundant are paying the price for our failures, and unfortunately I can't say anything right now that would convince the fans and all the staff that we will succeed."

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