Manchester United's Ruben Amorim Manchester United's Ruben Amorim gestures on the touchline during their Premier League football match against Arsenal at Old Trafford in Manchester on Sunday. Photo: Paul Ellis/AFP
Image: Paul Ellis/AFP
Ruben Amorim says it is down to him and Manchester United's "under-performing" players to change co-owner Jim Ratcliffe's damning verdict on the squad, starting with Thursday's Europa League last 16 second leg against Real Sociedad.
United are languishing in 14th place in the Premier League, having already been knocked out of both domestic cup competitions.
Ratcliffe responded to United's struggles with a scathing assessment this week, the British billionaire claiming some players are "not good enough" and "probably are overpaid".
The 72-year-old slammed Hojlund and Andre Onana in the interview, as well as the loaned-out duo Jadon Sancho and Antony, in blunt remarks about "inherited" players that the club are still paying for.
Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.
Asked on Wednesday about Ratcliffe's comments, United boss Amorim said: "I think if we are being honest in this moment everybody — me, all the players — are underperforming this season so we can always change that.
"So, I include myself in that part of under-performing. You are talking about players like Casemiro, for example, that won everything, and we know that these kind of players can play so much better, so that is the focus.
"He (Ratcliffe) was honest in that, so the focus is to change his mind and to change all the people's minds."
Amorim said there had been no complaints about Ratcliffe's remarks from within his squad.
"If you are a top player and you play in this football club and even me — a lot of people say I am not good enough for the club and my feeling is you can change that with results," he said.
"In training I feel they want that really bad, especially tomorrow."
The Europa League offers United's only realistic route to continental qualification for next season, increasing the pressure on Amorim to deliver against Sociedad.
United look set to be without 11 players for the match as they attempt to reach the quarter-finals in a tie currently level at 1-1.
Amorim acknowledged the significance of the Sociedad clash as he urged his side to play with more energy.
"In that context it's also important to give us more energy to continue the season," he said.
"We know that it's not going to change a lot the idea for the next season, but it gives us more energy to finish the season in a different way. Tomorrow, again, is going to be really important game for us."
Despite United's results, Amorim, hired from Sporting Lisbon in November, retains the backing of Ratcliffe since succeeding the sacked Erik ten Hag.
"It's really good since day one," said Amorim, who also hailed United's "amazing" plans for a new 100,000-seater stadium.
"I think we are really blunt and honest with each other. It's a little bit our characters, we are quite similar in that. I always felt the support of the board and especially from Sir Jim."
AFP