Ruben Amorim couldn’t watch.
Bruno Fernandes was about to take a penalty in the seventh minute of stoppage time that could well determine Amorim’s future as Manchester United manager, and it was too much for the Portuguese coach who has had the weight of the world on him this week.
So, he slid into his seat in the dugout, put his crossed feet up on the wall in front of him, and looked into the sky. Amorim just listened as Fernandes converted the spot kick to seal a 3-2 win over Burnley at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Who knows, it might just be enough to keep Amorim in a job.
“We should have won in a different way,” Amorim said, “we should not suffer.”
Amorim experienced another roller-coaster of emotions, days after falling under massive pressure following United’s embarrassing English League Cup exit at the hands of fourth-tier Grimsby Town in midweek.
After that game, he criticized his players and suggested discussions would be held next week about his position. If those negotiations take place, Amorim goes into them in a slightly stronger position, despite major doubts remaining over his ability to get United — one of the world’s biggest clubs — back to its previous heights.
“I am always talking with the board and I understand the context, the feeling and everything,” Amorim said, before adding about his emotional state: “I understand I say some things and I will say them again when we have these kind of moments.”
United squandered the lead twice against Burnley — one of the favorites for relegation — and was heading for a draw that would have left Amorim in a precarious position going into the international break.
Then, with the clock just into added-on time, United winger Amad Diallo had his jersey pulled by Jaidon Anthony as they ran into the area. On-field referee Sam Barrott declined to give a penalty, but was told to review the incident on video and he changed his mind.
Fernandes rolled the spot kick into the corner, Old Trafford erupted and Amorim could breathe again. It was a first win of the season for United following a 1-0 loss to Arsenal and a 1-1 draw at Fulham, with that embarrassing display at Grimsby thrown in.
United next plays against Manchester City in the derby. It remains to be seen if Amorim, who has been in charge for a turbulent 10 months, will still be around for that.
Chelsea gets help from VAR
Chelsea gained from some contentious refereeing calls in a 2-0 win over west London neighbor Fulham, whose manager Marco Silva struggled to contain his unhappiness.
Joao Pedro gave Chelsea the lead with a header from a corner in the ninth minute of first-half stoppage time, after a minimum of eight added-on minutes had been called.
That further angered Silva, who was already furious that his team’s 21st-minute goal by 18-year-old Josh King was ruled out after a VAR review deemed Rodrigo Muniz to have stamped on the foot of Trevoh Chalobah as he shielded the ball in the build-up.
Silva resorted to laughing sarcastically early in the second half when Chelsea was awarded a penalty for handball against Ryan Sessegnon following another video review, which highlighted two potential infringements — a push and a handball — by Joao Pedro in the build-up.
After a long delay, Enzo Fernandez converted the spot kick down the middle in the 56th.
“For someone that loves football as a manager, a former football player, as a fan sometimes when I just watch a game, I feel sad, really,” Silva said when asked for his views on the refereeing decisions. “Just that.”
Chelsea, the Club World Cup champion over the summer, has picked up seven points from a possible nine in its first three games in the Premier League.
Tottenham loses
One of the three 100% records in the Premier League disappeared when Tottenham lost 1-0 to Bournemouth, thanks to Evanilson’s fifth-minute goal.
Liverpool and Arsenal are the other two teams to have collected maximum points from the opening two games and they meet at Anfield on Sunday.
Sunderland scored a goal in the sixth-minute of stoppage time to beat Brentford 2-1 and Everton won 3-2 at Wolves.
With new signing Nick Woltemade watching from the directors’ box, Newcastle was held to a 0-0 draw at Leeds. Woltemade has likely been signed to replace Alexander Isak, who again didn’t feature for Newcastle as he looks to secure a move to Liverpool.
First league win for Wrexham
Wrexham, globally popular since being taken over by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in 2021, earned its first league win following promotion to the Championship by beating Millwall 2-0.
The Welsh club had lost two and drawn the other in its first three league games.
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Steve Douglas is at https://twitter.com/sdouglas80
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
