Roy Keane fears Man United have ‘a bit to go yet’ before reaching rock bottom

PA Sport Staff

Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane fears his old side are yet to hit rock bottom and questioned the impact of Ruben Amorim’s arrival at Old Trafford.

Prior to their fixture against Arsenal on Sunday, thousands of United fans protested against the club’s ownership, with United a dismal 14th in the Premier League.

Bruno Fernandes’ free-kick was cancelled out by Declan Rice as United and Arsenal shared the points with a 1-1 draw.

But speaking ahead of the match, Keane, who captained United to four Premier League titles, said: “The standards of the club have been dropping for a number of years, and have they reached rock bottom? Maybe there’s a bit to go yet.

“We always talk about giving managers time, but you can’t keep losing football matches either. And I can say that for most clubs, if you’re losing week in week out, there will be doubts in the dressing room.

“Players will be looking at the manager and thinking, ‘What are you bringing to the party?’ And when there’s been literally no reaction after coming into the club, well that’s a bit worrying.”

Amorim replaced Erik ten Hag in November, but United have recorded just six wins in the league since his appointment.

And Keane (53) continued: “There are huge struggles [for United] on and off the pitch, and that has been well documented.

“There has been no real reaction to the new manager coming in. There have been a few injuries, but they don’t look like there are many goals. They don’t look good at set-pieces, and they not very dynamic.

“They have to try and get some belief and confidence back into the group.”

United will return to action with the second leg of their last-16 Europa League match against Real Sociedad at Old Trafford on Thursday.

The tie is evenly poised following a 1-1 draw in Spain.