Manchester United suffered a humiliating 1-0 home defeat to ten-man Everton, a result that left the Portuguese head coach delivering a brutally honest post-match assessment of his team’s current level.
The game will be remembered for Idrissa Gueye’s 13th-minute red card – the Senegal midfielder sent off for slapping team-mate Michael Keane in the face after a misplaced pass – yet Everton somehow emerged victorious thanks to Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s 29th-minute strike and a heroic defensive display.
Moment of Madness, Moment of History
Gueye’s dismissal was only the third time in Premier League history a player has been sent off for striking a team-mate, and the first since Ricardo Fuller in 2008. The incident sparked furious debate:
– Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville called it “negligible” force and argued a yellow card would have sufficed.
– Jamie Carragher questioned whether referees should “manage the situation” rather than reach straight for red.
– Former Everton manager Roberto Martinez insisted the law left referee Tony Harrington with “no other choice” as any contact to the face is automatic violent conduct.
Everton boss David Moyes, in a throwback to his previous Old Trafford tenure, declared: “I quite like my players fighting each other if someone doesn’t do the right action. You want that toughness and resilience.”
Amorim’s Stark Warning
While Moyes praised the spirit that helped his side grind out a famous win, Amorim cut a desolate figure as he delivered a series of damning verdicts on his own team:
– “We are not there, not even near the point we should be to fight for the best positions in the league.”
– “These five weeks everyone was praising our evolution and I am always saying the same things – we are NOT near…”
– “I feel afraid of returning to this feeling of last season. That is my biggest fear.”
The United head coach even admitted he disagreed with Gueye’s red card, saying: “I hope my players, when they lose the ball, fight each other… Fighting is not a bad thing.”
Despite facing ten men for 77 minutes, United managed just one shot on target all evening – Joshua Zirkzee’s late header comfortably saved by Jordan Pickford – and registered an xG of only 0.62.
Where It Leaves United
The defeat means United have taken just one point from matches against Nottingham Forest, Tottenham and now Everton – games in which they led or faced reduced opposition.
They remain 10th, three points off the top four but now with a growing sense of crisis.
Amorim’s side travel to Crystal Palace on Sunday in a match that already feels pivotal just 12 months into his tenure.
For Everton, a first win at Old Trafford since 2013 lifts them further clear of danger and provides the ultimate example of the togetherness David Moyes has instilled.
As Old Trafford emptied in stunned silence, one thing was clear: Ruben Amorim’s “storm” that he famously predicted a year ago has well and truly arrived – and right now Manchester United look completely unequipped to weather it.