Ruben Amorim aimed some words of frustration at Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes following his red card during the disheartening 2-0 loss to Wolves on Boxing Day. The defeat marked United's third consecutive defeat in all competitions as they succumbed to the pressure at Molineux.
After a balanced first half, Fernandes' dismissal gave Wolves the upper hand when he received his second booking for a late challenge on Nelson Semedo.
Wolves then took the lead thanks to Matheus Cunha's audacious corner that bypassed Andre Onana and found its way into the net.
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It was the second time in a week that United had conceded directly from a corner, having suffered the same mishap in the Carabao Cup quarter-final defeat at Tottenham.
Desperate for a leveller, Amorim made offensive substitutions but watched Wolves secure victory and escape the drop zone through Hwang Hee-chan's breakaway goal in the dying moments of the match.
Fernandes’ discipline – or lack thereof – has become an issue, with this sending-off marking his third in just 27 games across all competitions this season.
The added absence proved detrimental yet again, and Amorim did not hold back his frustrations while speaking to Prime Video after the final whistle.
"Of course, when you lose, when we don't win, it's a step back. It was really hard with the sending off," the Portuguese tactician explained.
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"The goal was similar against Tottenham. Then, we tried. Even with one less guy, we tried to, and I think we were near something, but then Wolves scored the second one.
"Then, in the end, we tried everything and the transition was 2-0. For us, let's continue."
Directly addressing Fernandes' red card, after which he blanked the No. 8 as he left the pitch, Amorim expressed his frustration.
He said: "I think he cannot go to the ball. He's trying to reach the ball, and some guys are not even looking at the ball, but I don't want to focus on that.
"I think the good thing is we were near the goal, even with 10 men. That is a good thing, but we lost.
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"It's so tough to win games in this league with 11 men. With 10 men, it's more difficult. We have to focus on that.
"We have to improve the relationships, but we have some moments. We lack a little bit of aggression, but we don't train.
"We just play and try to find a better way to win games, and that's it. We can't control the games like the other ones that we lost.
"I think we were always in control of the game, not always dominating, but in control of some things, some set-pieces. The sending-off was really hard for us."
