Under-fire Ruben Amorim was delighted by Manchester United’s much-needed victory over Chelsea but wants his team to stop making life needlessly “complicated”.
Old Trafford witnessed an action-packed Premier League encounter against Enzo Maresca’s side on Saturday when the weather was as bad as the visitors’ start.
Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was sent off inside five minutes and Bruno Fernandes soon marked his 200th Premier League appearance with his 100th United goal before Casemiro put the hosts in cruise control.
But the Brazil international’s sending-off after collecting a second booking just before the break set up a nervy second half, with the hosts digging deep for a 2-1 win after Trevoh Chalobah pulled one back for Chelsea late on.
“It was really important,” United boss Amorim said of the result. “I think we deserved it, but we complicated our lives every time.
“I think we started the game really well – really well in terms of the aggression and to push the opponent and to show that we were there, even to bring our fans with us.
“Of course, the sending-off of the goalkeeper helped us a lot, but we were in control, we scored two goals. And with everything going well, we (made things) complicated with that sending-off.
“The second half I think we managed well, but, in the end, the last 15 minutes was tough for us. They scored a goal and then we suffered together and we managed to win.”
Amorim was proud of the way United dug deep to secure just their second win of the season, but there is little chance of the under-fire Red Devils boss resting on his laurels.
United failed to win back-to-back Premier League games last season and has challenged his side to do so away to Brentford next weekend.
“Sometimes we have some moments that we feel an urgency to have a result,” Amorim said. “This team has shown many times that we have that urgency.
“Today we won. It’s nice to win, but let’s forget that and return to that urgency. We need to win the next game. That is the most important thing.
“Because in the big club it’s not that feeling, ‘Today is a really good game, let’s relax a little bit’.
“So, let’s return that urgency, we need to win the next one and that is the most important feeling we have to take for the next week.”
As for Chelsea counterpart Maresca, he left Old Trafford pointless and frustrated after their gameplan was thrown out the window by Sanchez’s early red card.
Asked if he would have preferred his keeper to have let Bryan Mbeumo through to score rather than foul him, the Blues boss said: “Yeah, probably it is the best solution because we are still 95 minutes to play.
“I think even Robert is aware of that. But also it’s difficult because he has to take a decision in one second, two seconds so it’s difficult.
“But, for sure, if you ask me, I prefer to be 1-0 down after three minutes than one player down.”
Maresca made three first-half substitutions in a bid to stem the tide, including the eye-catching decision to bring off star man Cole Palmer.
“He had a test this morning to play this game,” Maresca said. “He was not 100 per cent fit.
“He made a fantastic effort to play this game, but he was not 100 per cent.”
