Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim insisted it was a “very, very good sign” to see Rasmus Hojlund and Amad Diallo visibly arguing after Thursday night’s win over Viktoria Plzen as frustrations between the two boiled over in the closing stages.
Hojlund scored both United goals off the bench after the hosts had taken a surprise lead early in the second half. But when Amorim’s were searching for a two-goal cushion in stoppage time, a couple of attacks saw Hojlund and Amad opt against passing to each other.
The Danish striker was clearly annoyed when he didn’t get a ball from Amad in one such instance. Less than a minute later, he chose not to pass to the Ivorian in what appeared to be tit for tat. When the full-time whistle sounded, words were exchanged between the two while still on the pitch.
When Amorim was pressed for a response by reporters, he claimed it was “healthy” and proof that the players “care” about wanting to win.
“For me it’s perfect,” the boss said.
“In this moment, we need to feel something, if we need to fight each other it’s like a family, for me it’s a very, very good sign. That is important. When you don’t care, you do nothing. When you care, you fight with your brother, with your father, with your mother.
“It’s a normal thing, it’s a positive thing, a healthy thing. I let the players and the captain calm down the things. If I think it’s too much, I will [intervene] in the dressing room. But it’s their space, they have to talk, to fight and for me it’s a very important thing.
“I am happy that we won the game and still fight each other. When you win and you fight with your teammate because you want to score one more, for me it’s a very good day for us.”
Although not a perfect performance after a dreary first half and then conceding, the result ends a recent run of two successive defeats and marks a third straight Europa League victory.
