Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim makes damning admission after 16th Premier League defeat of the season

Ruben Amorim says Manchester United are not ready to be competitive in the Premier League and Champions League next season.

United racked up their 16th defeat of the league season, their most for 35 years, with the 4-3 loss at European hopefuls Brentford, a result that mathematically consigns them to a bottom-half finish.

Amorim, who made eight changes and named the third-youngest side in Premier League history, was prioritising Thursday's Europa League semi-final second leg against Athletic Club, with United 3-0 up on aggregate.

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United will be playing Champions League football next season if they can win the Europa League, but Amorim says that is a "real dilemma" for the club.

"We are not ready to play in the Premier League, be competitive, and to be in the Champions League," Amorim told Sky Sports when asked about the pressure of being so close to qualification.

"We know that, but we need to win, and we need to fight to win this competition, to give something to our fans, and to go to the Champions League.

"Then we will have time to prepare the team to cope with those two competitions. So, it is a dilemma, but we want to win, of course."

Amorim: We are playing better

United were trailing 4-1 with eight minutes to go at Brentford, but late goals from Alejandro Garnacho and substitute Amad Diallo restored some respectability for Amorim's struggling side.

There were flashes of promise, particularly Mason Mount's opener, his first league goal for 13 months, but the performance, for the most part, stood in stark contrast to Thursday's impressive 3-0 win over Athletic Club.

Amorim has failed to translate United's Europa League form into consistent performances and results in the Premier League, but insists he is seeing signs of progress.

He added: "I have no doubts that we are playing better, and we are understanding the way we play, even in this context. So, we have to take all the hits.

"We are losing games in the Premier League, we are fighting for the Europa League, so we need to accept that and to think about Thursday as the most important game for us."

Asked about the goal for Mount, who has endured another season blighted by injuries, Amorim added: "It's not just the finish, it's the position that he has on the pitch. He's like a third midfielder that can reach the box. He's really intelligent.

"He's getting there and he trains really hard. Sometimes I have to push him back and to take him off the pitch because he wants to do so much more. We are taking care of him.

"He wants to play more minutes, but the minutes were controlled. I'm really happy with him."

Amorim: We cannot do this anymore

Striker Chido Obi became the youngest player in United's history to start a Premier League game at Brentford, aged 17 years and 156 days, as fellow academy graduates Harry Amass and Tyler Fredricson also got the nod.

Amorim was pleased with the young trio and the experience they gained, but sent a clear message to them that United's standards in their worst season in the Premier League era would not be accepted moving forward.

"It is really important to understand that we cannot do this anymore," he said, when asked about how important it was for the young players to learn from the defeat.

"We know the context, but this kind of season we need to change. They need to understand what it is to play for Manchester United.

"I think they did really well. They [have] not [been] playing so much, but then they have to play 90 minutes because we have to change some other players to save them for Thursday."

Asked about the experience they would have gained, Amorim: "It's really important because you can train a lot with the first team, but to have that feeling, playing with the players, feeling the players, the speed of the game, I think it is the best thing."

Obi, on his first senior start, was tasked with leading the line against Brentford's physical centre-back pairing of Nathan Collins and Sepp van den Berg, whose last-minute block denied a goalbound strike from the teenage striker.

The Denmark U21 international had a frustrating full debut until that moment, when he burst through a challenge in the box, and looked destined to at least test Brentford goalkeeper Mark Flekken but for Van den Berg's intervention.

"Chido fought for all game, but you can feel that he's really naive sometimes in the way he puts his body," Amorim said. "He's going to understand what is the feeling of playing in these games. This is the best way."

(c) Sky Sports 2025: Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim makes damning admission after 16th Premier League defeat of the season