Ruben Amorim accepts criticism from former players over Kobbie Mainoo handling

Ruben Amorim has no problem with high-profile former players criticising him and his handling of Kobbie Mainoo as the Manchester United manager knows he is “not doing good enough”.

The Red Devils entered the weekend sixth in the Premier League having lost just one of their previous nine matches, but the Portuguese has yet to fully move on from a wretched first season.

Paul Scholes has been among the critical voices and this week said he does not believe Amorim is “the right man” for a club he does not feel the Portuguese understands.

The United great has been particularly irked by the treatment of Mainoo, with former team-mates Nicky Butt and Rio Ferdinand joining him in suggesting the 20-year-old should look to leave having yet to start a Premier League match this season.

“I think it’s normal,” Amorim said of criticism from ex-players and pundits. “I think it’s a fact that me as a manager of Manchester United, I think we are underachieving.

“We should have more points, especially this season, so I take that naturally.

“Sometimes they don’t have all the information and they see Manchester United with the standards that they lived here, always winning, so it’s hard for them to see their club in this situation.

“About Kobbie, I can speak about Kobbie at every press conference. Sometimes it’s harder for me to speak after the game, so it’s always the same situation for me. All of them are the same.”

Asked if pundits’ criticism makes his job harder, the self-deprecating United manager said: “No. It’s not winning. I think not winning is the issue.

“Of course you can point a lot of things, and they point a lot of things that we need to improve but the big issue is not winning.

“If I’m winning I can go to the games on a horse,