Manchester United's Argentinian defender #06 Lisandro Martinez (C) shoots to score the opening goal of the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on January 5, 2025. (Photo by Darren Staples / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB/LEAGUE LOGOS OR 'LIVE' SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES. AN ADDITIONAL 40 IMAGES MAY BE USED IN EXTRA TIME. NO VIDEO EMULATION. SOCIAL MEDIA IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES. AN ADDITIONAL 40 IMAGES MAY BE USED IN EXTRA TIME. NO USE IN BETTING PUBLICATIONS, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB/LEAGUE/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. /
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Manchester United’s Argentinian defender #06 Lisandro Martinez (C) shoots to score the opening goal of the English Premier League football match between Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield in Liverpool, north west England on January 5, 2025. | AFP photo.
Ruben Amorim said life at Manchester United has become ‘too comfortable’ as he challenged his players to show the mentality that earned a 2-2 draw at Liverpool on Sunday on a more regular basis.
Few gave Amorim’s men much hope heading to face the runaway Premier League leaders at Anfield after a four-game losing streak.
However, the visitors were a side transformed from meek defeats to Bournemouth, Wolves and Newcastle as they scored their first goals away at Liverpool since 2018 and merited a share of the spoils.
‘I want to see my team play so much better but the key today is the mentality,’ said Amorim.
‘I feel that we are, not just the players but everyone at Manchester United, too comfortable. We need sometimes a shock and you can see today we were a different team.’
United captain Bruno Fernandes said he was ‘upset’ by the fact his side showed what they are capable of against the Premier League’s best but have consistently underperformed this season.
‘Today we were a different team not because of the system or tactical part of the game. It doesn’t matter who the opponent is, we need to play every day like that,’ added Amorim.
‘Today is all about the focus. The focus on set pieces, the focus on passing the ball where we cannot lose the ball because in the other part of the pitch is (Mohamed) Salah and (Luis) Diaz.
‘If you have that mentality every day we are a different team.’
Liverpool have a six-point lead at the top of the table with a game in hand over second-placed Arsenal, who were also held to a draw by Brighton on Saturday.
But Arne Slot conceded his side had missed an opportunity to streak further clear and close in on equalling United’s record tally of 20 English top-flight titles.
