Manchester United lost 2-0 to Atlético Madrid on Tuesday, conceding inside the opening minute before Leny Yoro’s dismissal made their task even harder. Ademola Lookman scored Atletico Madrid’s second goal late in the match, leaving United facing further questions about their form and their ability to respond under pressure.
Santos addressed the travelling supporters after the game, acknowledging their commitment and promising that the players would work to improve before Sunday’s visit to Leeds United.
“We just want to say sorry to everyone who has travelled to Spain,” the Brazilian midfielder said.
“We want to win every single game, but now it’s time to work hard and come back with a victory.
“It was a tough game, a hard game. The way we started was a little bit of a complication, but now we have to improve more and more. We have a big game next, so we have to improve more and work hard. We have to look ahead to the next game and then come back much stronger.”
United’s poor start left them chasing the game almost immediately, with Pablo Barrios opening the scoring after less than a minute. The visitors improved as the match progressed but struggled to convert their opportunities, before Yoro’s red card left them with ten men for the closing stages.
Santos was also asked whether the players continued to support Carrick, whose position has come under increasing scrutiny following a series of disappointing results.
“Yes, of course, we believe in the manager. We believe in the whole staff, we believe in ourselves as players. We are in a bad moment, but we have to work to change this result,” he said.
The midfielder acknowledged that United had expected a difficult opening against a strong opponent, but admitted that conceding so early had undermined their plans.
“We knew the first 15 minutes would be hard because we were playing away against a big team. We were sad to concede a goal in the first minute of the game.”
He added that captain Bruno Fernandes and the other players had urged the team to remain positive after falling behind.
“Bruno was saying, and everyone was saying, to keep going and keep pushing. This is football, anything can happen.”
Santos’s comments offered a public show of support for Carrick at a difficult moment, although the manager’s immediate priority is to find a response on the pitch.
“We have to work hard, push ourselves and be better and better and better,” Santos said.
United now face a crucial domestic test at Leeds, with the players under pressure to turn their promises of improvement into a result.