“Looking like a right plonker!” - Ex-Chelsea star slams Amorim for second half moment in ‘embarrassing’ Manchester United loss to Grimsby Town

Former Chelsea striker Craig Burley has launched a scathing attack on Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim following the club’s humiliating Carabao Cup exit to League Two side Grimsby Town on Wednesday night. United crashed out of the competition in dramatic fashion, losing 12-11 in a marathon penalty shootout after a 2-2 draw in regulation time.

During his punditry duties on ESPN, Burley did not hold back in his assessment of the defeat, branding the performance ‘awful’ and heavily criticizing Amorim.

“Embarrassing isn't strong enough [a word to describe that loss], is it?,” Burley asked. “I can’t swear on TV but embarrassing isn’t strong enough! Just awful. Do you remember after the Arsenal game, Ruben Amorim said, ‘we’ve shown today we can beat anybody’?

“Well, they’ve lost to Arsenal, they drew at Fulham and they lost to Grimsby. At half time, Ugarte was off. What the hell does he do? They chased him for 60 million. They brought Fernandes on and Mbeumo, and De Ligt, all the big-hitters on, and they should have still been 3-0 down before they equalised because Grimsby were creating chances.

The former Scotland international was particularly criticial of Amorim for what he described as an utterly embarassing moment during the second half. The United boss and his staff were seen using a tactics board on the touchline in an apparent attempt to adjust their shape against the fourth-tier side.

“During the second half, [we saw] the Manchester United manager on a tactics board doing these little things with his coaches, looking like a right plonker! You’re playing Grimsby Town and you need to go on a tactics board to figure out where the space is and how to beat them? The whole thing is just utterly embarrassing," Burley added.

For Burley, the result is more than just an upset. It’s a damning indictment of the state of Manchester United under Amorim. He concluded:

“Even if you’re a Man United fan, you must be sitting here thinking this is a shambles. An absolute shambles from back to front. Well done, Grimsby, what a day for these boys. I don’t know what the worst result in Manchester United’s history is, but this has to be arguably it or certainly up there. Can you imagine getting back into that bus and going back to Manchester? What a shame.”

Prior to the loss to Grimsby, United had never lost a Carabao Cup match against fourth-tier opposition, winning all 11 such matches.

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Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim says Grimsby deserve to qualify after shocking Carabao Cup exit

Ruben Amorim pulled no punches during his assessment of Manchester United’s performance after they were eliminated from the EFL Cup. The Portuguese manager believes the League Two side deserved to go through to the next stage.

He said during an interview with MUTV:

“I know the best team won today. The best players lost, because when you are a team you can win any game. It was really fair the football today.”

United will play Burnley next in the Premier League on Saturday, August 30.