Ruben Amorim says United “need to evolve” after beating Crystal Palace | OneFootball

Manchester United steadied the ship with a much-needed win at Crystal Palace to bounce back from their toothless defeat to Everton at the start of the week.

The hosts went ahead from the spot in the first half as the Red Devils huffed and puffed in the London sunshine, but goals from Joshua Zirkzee and Mason Mount after the break secured a big three points.

Control and capitalising

Head coach Ruben Amorim spoke to BBC MOTD after the game and explained that “it was small details that helped” his side get the win.

“The pace and intensity was better in the second half,” he said. “I could see that Palace were getting tired at the end of the first half and knew they would suffer if we scored.

“We went on to control the game well away from our goal and in the opposition half. We controlled the game well but just have to be careful about what we did in the first half.”

United were miles better in the second half compared to the first, and Amorim is right to be cautious, but it is heartening to see him capitalise on an advantage today in a way he failed to against a ten-man Everton.

Asked how to exploit a team fatigued from midweek European football, Amorim said: “It’s the runs, and you could see it with Joshua Zirkzee and how he connected with the team through the second ball.

“You have to explain that to the players but we have experience of being like that [tired] from last season when we played midweek.”

Into the top six

United’s lack of European football this season is both an illustration of the abject failure of their last campaign and an advantage in having fewer games than their rivals and more time on the training pitch.

Beating Palace left United, for a few hours at least, in sixth place and in the frame for a return to the European stage.

When asked about breaking into the top six, Amorim was coy: “In this moment I just want to evaluate our team. We need to evolve and create variety in how we build-up – that’s the most important thing.”

Goals coming back

It was refreshing to see two lesser-spotted names on the scoresheet today, in particular Joshua Zirkzee, who has struggled for gametime this season and looked poor against Everton.

Asked whether his goal today will boost the player’s confidence, Amorim said: “Scoring is important but it’s not just the goals. They give confidence but Joshua has also improved a lot in how he holds the ball.

“That should give him a lot of confidence. He influences the game and that’s important to our game. He needs to maintain that level in training.”

The winner was bagged by Mason Mount who doubled his tally for the season. Amorim was asked about goals being shared out amongst his squad, and he explained that “they have the quality and we have more players in the squad who can score.

“I’m really happy with them. Joshua [Zirkzee] hasn’t had many minutes and Mason [Mount] works really hard.”

United’s leaky defence was tighter today, with Palace’s goal coming from a penalty. Amorim said: “We weren’t near our own box and in the second half we touched every first ball and then got the second. We took advantage of a tired opponent.”

Featured image Warren Little via Getty Images

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