Daniel Sturridge hailed Manchester United summer signing Matheus Cunha as the ‘best player on the pitch’ after the opening-day defeat to Arsenal.
United, who finished 15th in the Premier League last season, produced an improved performance at Old Trafford but still fell to a defeat, Riccardo Calafiori scoring the only goal of the game.
Calafiori was on hand on the line to head home in the 13th-minute after Altay Bayindir flapped at Declan Rice’s inswinging corner.
Both teams had chances to score after Calafiori’s opener but the game finished 1-0 with Mikel Arteta’s side returning to north London with three points.
While United suffered yet another home defeat under Amorim, there were signs of progress from the Red Devils, particularly with summer signings Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo.
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‘I thought Cunha lit the place up today,’ ex-England striker Sturridge said on Sky Sports. ‘He was Man United’s best player and for me, maybe the best player on the pitch.
‘What he will bring is something different to United, they haven’t had someone like him. He will get fans on the edge of their seat. He’s going to be a special player for the team.
‘United showed a different side to Arsenal that we haven’t seen in that they were a bit more open, especially in central areas.
‘All in all United’s attack will be going away and thinking to themselves, “On another day I could be walking away with one or two”.
‘If I was Mbeumo I would be going to bed thinking, “Wow, I should have left with a goal today”.’
Ex-Manchester United captain Roy Keane was also ‘encouraged’ by aspects of the hosts’ performance but said there were still ‘problems’ throughout the team.
‘The expectations at United now are so low, that even Gary [Neville] said on commentary, everyone is OK with a 1-0 defeat,’ he said. ‘They’ve got to do better.
‘It does worry me. Some of the new signings, there was encouragement with that. They were getting you up the pitch with a bit of power.
‘Things will improve, it’s tough against Arsenal, but no goals and another defeat. There’s still problems there with Manchester United.’
Old Trafford boss Ruben Amorim, meanwhile, felt his team ‘deserved more’ against Arsenal and claimed United were the ‘better team’.
Man Utd unlucky and ‘the better team’ – Amorim
‘We deserved more and we were the better team, that is clear but in the end we lost,’ he said.
‘We need to work on the things we need to improve. We need to defend set pieces. But we did a lot things right.
‘There are a lot of things without seeing the video that we need to work. I am really proud of my players.
‘We were more aggressive and brave. In certain moments I think Bryan [Mbeumo] and Cunha helped a lot.
‘We stuck to the plan even when the stadium is nervous, we continued to play the way we played and that will help us in the future.’
Manchester United will look for their first points of the new season next Sunday when they face Fulham at Craven Cottage.
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