Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim issued a scathing response to his team's home defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers but spared two of his players from his criticism.
Man Utd were beaten by the only goal of the game by Pablo Sarabia, a free kick which pulled Wolves level on points with United in 15th and 14th place respectively in the Premier League.
The Red Devils are just two points ahead of West Ham United, who currently sit in 17th above a bottom three all but doomed to relegation from the top flight.
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While Amorim has turned his attention to the Europa League in the aftermath of Thursday's spectacular comeback win against Lyon in the quarter-finals, that chase for an otherwise impossible Champions League return already appears to be coming at a cost.
United's Premier League plan for the remainder of their Europa League participation appears to be to give extended playing time to the second string and the club's highest-rated youngsters.
18-year-old left-back Harry Amass made his first Premier League start in defeat to Newcastle United and got the nod again for a first home start against Wolves on Sunday.
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He was joined for the first time by Tyler Fredricson, a 20-year-old centre-back who was born in Manchester and came through their academy ranks before joining the first team squad for the first time under Erik ten Hag in 2022.
Fredricson made his senior debut as part of Amorim's starting eleven against Wolves at Old Trafford.
The head coach was unhappy with his players after their latest Premier League loss but exempted the two youngsters, who were also praised by fans after strong showings, from the worst of his review.
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"They were really good and deserved a better memory from this game," Amorim told media after the match.
"But if you don't score, you won't win. They played really well and deserved better."
United's inability to take their chances was a theme of Amorim's analysis.
They had three times as many shots as Wolves but the same number – two – of shots on target. Amorim was frustrated by their profligacy.
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"[Wolves] score in the only opportunity they have," he said. "If you are not going to score goals, you are not going to win games."
Topics: Man Utd, Manchester United, Ruben Amorim
Chris Nee