Manchester United defender Matthijs de Ligt has defended manager Ruben Amorim amid growing criticism, insisting that the players must take full responsibility for the team’s recent struggles.

United’s inconsistent form continued last weekend when they fell to a 3-1 defeat against Brentford, just a week after edging Chelsea 2-1.

The game started poorly for the Red Devils as Igor Thiago struck twice within 20 minutes for the Bees. Benjamin Sesko gave United hope by pulling one back, but Bruno Fernandes missed a penalty before Mathias Jensen sealed the win in stoppage time.

De Ligt dismissed claims that Amorim’s tactics were to blame, stressing that concentration and decision-making from the players made the real difference.

“Of course, it’s always easy to look at the manager, but in the end the players on the pitch have to do it,” De Ligt said.

“We can’t say the goals we conceded, or the chances we conceded, are because of the system. It has a lot to do with focus and concentration. If that’s lacking in key moments, it makes the difference.”

The Dutch defender admitted his frustration, pointing out that the squad had spoken all week about building momentum, only to fall short again.

“Really disappointed because all week we were speaking about keeping the momentum going, getting another win. But if you lose this game, it’s a big blow. Too often it’s the same story – we made the wrong decisions in key moments,” he added.

Manchester United will be under pressure to bounce back quickly as questions continue to mount over Amorim’s leadership.