Usain Bolt pleaded with Rio Ferdinand to ‘go to the team and say something’ after Manchester United drew at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Saturday.
The eight-time Olympic champion watched on as Ruben Amorim’s men scraped a point against Spurs despite leading until the 84th minute.
Bryan Mbeumo put the Red Devils ahead with a first-half header before Thomas Frank’s side scored two in a five minute blitz at the death to leave the visitors staring down the barrel of a defeat. Matthijs de Ligt nevertheless spared his manager’s woes with a last-minute header to make it 2-2.
However Bolt, an avid United supporter, struggled to hide his frustrations in a voice note read out on the latest episode of Rio Ferdinand’s podcast.
The Jamaican icon complained: ‘I just watched the United game, one of our biggest problems is when we invite pressure onto ourselves. They’re always running back, all we do is invite pressure.
‘Please (Rio), I’m begging you man. Get to the team and say something. You are one of the greatest defenders Man United ever had, please bro, it’s stressing me out.
Man United fan Usain Bolt struggled to hide his frustration after watched the Red Devils draw at Tottenham on the weekend
Matthijs de Ligt salvaged a point for United at the death after they blew a lead in a five-minute blitz from the hosts
‘I know you have nothing to do with this but tell the guys to pass the ball quicker. Oh my god bro. They don’t know how to defend one-on-one. Shaw is the only one that seems like he understands. All they know is system, lineup and play well.
‘They don’t know how to step up, push the defender and then go back into your line. I push up (as a defender) and the midfield slots in. Please Rio, get to somebody.’
Yet Ferdinand was less scathing in his analysis of his former club’s second consecutive draw, urging fans to ‘temper their expectations’.
After a dire start to Amorim’s second campaign at the helm, United have weathered the storm in recent weeks and now sit seventh in the table and one point off a Champions League spot.
‘There were times against Spurs where it (United’s defence) wasn’t working as a cohesive unit,’ Ferdinand admitted, ‘but it’s going to happen!
‘We’re still in this rebuilding phase and I think that’s why we’ve got to manage the expectations of fans. I’ve seen some people going off on one, going crazy saying, “the manager ruined it with his substitutions.”
‘But if he didn’t make any subs and we still got the same result, everyone would be going, “why didn’t he change it?” He’s damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t sometimes.
‘Arne Slot won the league last year, went to City this year and got it totally wrong. It does happen.’
Rio Ferdinand was however far less scathing in his analysis of United’s second consecutive post
Ruben Amorim admitted his side ‘can do better’ post-match despite being reduced to 10 men
United were a man down after Benjamin Sesko was forced off with an injury
United were ultimately left a man down for the final 10 minutes in north London after Benjamin Sesko was forced off following a challenge by Micky Van de Ven. Amorim had already used his five substitutes having introduced Manuel Ugarte, Patrick Dorgu, Mason Mount, Leny Yoro and the Slovenian.
The Portuguese later admitted that he was forced into changing Harry Maguire and the in-form Casemiro because both players picked up knocks.
Despite seeing his side reduced to 10 men, Amorim was adamant that United could have ‘done better’ and taken the three points back to Manchester.
‘We have a lot of problems,’ he said after the game. ‘We are just in the beginning. I know that sometimes the results show to people that we are improving. We are improving but we have a lot to do.
‘If you look at the rest of the game (other than when Spurs scored their two goals) we were comfortable but I think we should do better, be more aggressive, feeling the environment in the stadium that the three points were there, the space was there and I think we felt too comfortable during the game.
‘We need to expect that in one play, anything can happen and change the mood of the stadium – and today was that. So I think we controlled it well, the game, but we need to do better because the game was there to take.’
The Old Trafford club are back in action after the international break with a home clash against Everton.
