HONG KONG: Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim said Thursday that his players cannot “hide” after a dismal season hit a fresh low when they were booed off following a friendly defeat in Malaysia.
United finished 15th in the Premier League and failed to win a trophy, then immediately jetted out Sunday for lucrative friendlies in Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong.
But if his squad were hoping for some respite in Asia, they did not get it, suffering a 1-0 defeat to a Southeast Asian XI in the Malaysian capital on Wednesday.
United’s players trudged off with boos ringing in their ears and now face Hong Kong’s representative team in another friendly on Friday.
“We’ve had the season that we had and it’s not easy to face the fans around the world, so it’s a moment that is hard for us and we want to finish the season,” Amorim said of the tour at the end of a long and poor campaign.
“But at the same time we want to give something to the fans. We are traveling, we don’t have time to adapt, we don’t have so much time to have contact with the fans and give everything they deserve.
“But it’s clear that we cannot hide... if there is one thing that is really important in this club, it’s that we need to face our fans in this moment and give something to our fans around the world.”
Amorim, who took over from Erik ten Hag during the season but failed to spark an improvement in performances, said his side of first-teamers and youngsters was “not really focused” in Wednesday’s loss.
“Everybody can feel it. But I understand the fans (booing), I understand the players and you also understand that we want to give something to the fans, but it’s hard in this moment,” he said.
The 40-year-old Portuguese said he had learned that being Manchester United manager meant being “more than a coach.”
“You have to improve as a person, you have to improve as a leader. Sometimes after the games you see I am frustrated, I am trying to control that.
“When you have results, you can manage everything so much easier,” he added.
Heavy rain lashed the 40,000-capacity Hong Kong Stadium on the eve of the game and Amorim will be desperate not to have any fresh injuries to finish off the campaign.
“The weather looks like Manchester so we feel at home,” Amorim joked.
“If we are professional and we focus on the game it is the best way to protect our players from injuries,” he added.
