After an incredible comeback against Man City, Man United quickly came back to earth with a 3-4 defeat to Tottenham in the League Cup quarter-finals and most recently a 0-3 defeat to Bournemouth in round 17 of the Premier League.
The result leaves the Red Devils in 13th place with 22 points, one behind Tottenham and Brentford. It is also the first time since the 1989-90 season that they have been in the bottom half of the table on Christmas Day.
Responding after the defeat, coach Amorim said: "Nothing bad lasts forever and nothing good lasts forever. So we have to be strong in our ideas, especially in bad times. We will do that and try to win the next match."
After 9 matches in charge of Man United, Ruben Amorim has won 4, drawn 1 and lost 4 times. Although the players' morale is gradually improving, the 39-year-old strategist's instability and defensive mistakes are still making him pay the price many times.
This is the fourth time in the Premier League this season that Man United have conceded at least three goals at Old Trafford. This is also their worst performance in a calendar year in the English top flight since 1972 (also with four matches).
Against Bournemouth, Man United lost two consecutive home matches by at least three goals. Last season, they also lost with a similar result 0-3. In their entire history, the "Red Devils" have only faced this achievement once, after losing 1-4 to Burnley in 1961 and 2-5 in 1962.
Meanwhile, the Red Devils' defense has conceded 17 goals from set pieces, not counting penalties, this season. If they cannot overcome this inherent weakness, Ruben Amorim's team will likely continue to sink deeper into crisis.
“We are working on that, but we don’t lose because of set pieces. We lose because we create more chances and don’t score. At the moment when everything is against us, Bournemouth score,” Amorim said.
The 39-year-old tactician is increasingly feeling the heat of the toughest tournament on the planet. Despite receiving great support from fans, Ruben Amorim needs to quickly improve Man United's performance, if he does not want to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor Erik Ten Hag.
