Wayne Rooney, former captain and all-time top scorer of Manchester United, is extremely disappointed with his old club’s performance.
Rooney sees no signs of improvement in Manchester United’s play. On the contrary, he believes that under the coaching of Ruben Amorim, his beloved club is heading further into decline.
At the Etihad Stadium on Sunday, United suffered a 3-0 defeat against City in the Manchester derby.
This loss has increased the pressure on Amorim. United appointed him as head coach on November 1 after Erik ten Hag was dismissed. But even after more than ten months, Amorim has struggled to put the team back on track.
The latest match was another example of his team’s poor performance. Against a resurgent Manchester City, United’s supporters had already started leaving the stadium well before the final whistle. On BBC’s “The Wayne Rooney Show,” the former captain criticized coach Amorim.
“I want to support the coach and the players as much as possible. But it is very difficult to say sitting here that we are seeing progress or anything that will yield results in the near future. We are not seeing that, and it is very painful.”
“I watched the end of the match, and Manchester United supporters were leaving the stadium. Fans were singing Amorim’s name, but in my opinion, it sends a much stronger message that the United fans were leaving before the match ended. They had realized the fight was over, and I think they were extremely disappointed with what they saw.”
Last season, United finished 15th in the league with 42 points, their worst position since the 1989–90 season. It is also their lowest points total in the top flight since the 1973–74 relegation season.
Since taking over, Amorim has spent nearly £25 million to bring in new players. Several players have left for other clubs, and he has been able to restructure the team to play in a 3-4-3 formation. Yet, old problems persist even at the start of the new season.
“When Ten Hag was sacked last year and Ruben came in, we heard how they would play and that changes would happen. I think, if the coach is honest with himself, it has actually gotten worse.”
