Matthijs de Ligt feels Manchester United lack ‘hunger to score’ goals after another tame defeat to Tottenham on Sunday.
The Red Devils are 15th in the Premier League table after a 1-0 loss at Spurs on Sunday, with James Maddison scoring the only goal of the game after just 13 minutes.
Ruben Amorim was dealing with a lot of injury and illness issues, but the same could be said of his opposition.
Manchester United did have some chances in the match, with Alejandro Garnacho firing a good opportunity over the bar, while Joshua Zirkzee flashed a free header wide of goal from inside the box.
However, the team that has been really struggling for goals all season again failed to find the back of the net.
United have scored just 28 goals in their 25 league games, with a Premier League goal difference of -7.
De Ligt felt the team’s performance was ‘ok’ but there was a lacking in urgency and hunger to score goals as the Red Devils struggle badly for results.
‘If you lose it’s never enough. We can speak about the personal problems, the injuries, but Tottenham have the same problems,’ said the Dutch defender.
‘We played OK and created some chances. But if you lose 1-0, you didn’t score and conceded one, so we needed to improve at both ends.
‘I think the urgency, the hunger to score, that is something that may be lacking. That’s not only on the attackers, it’s also on the midfield and the defenders. It’s a team thing and we definitely need to improve.’
He added that confidence is low in the squad, saying: ‘I think you can say [confidence] has taken a real hit. Especially in the Premier League, if you lose the confidence you lose the game.
‘We still had a starting XI with first-team players. It’s no excuse. It’s not nice when you lose five players in one week, but that’s part of football, part of life.
‘I believe you have to deserve fortune. At the moment, apparently we don’t deserve it. I don’t believe in fortune coming out of nowhere.’
