Manchester United fell behind 0-2, equalized, but exited on penalties; two new signings worth £130 million hosted a defeat! Amolin called to resign and apologized.

Under Ruben Amolin's management, Manchester United finally played a match worthy of historical note, but unfortunately, the legend was made by their opponent Grimsby. This semi-professional team, ranked 4th in League Two, eliminated the famous but not very strong Red Devils in the second round of the League Cup. Previously known to fans only because of the late Chinese player Zhang Enhua, this club will be forever remembered in football history for this huge upset.

Facing an opponent three tiers below them, the visiting Manchester United rotated most of their central defenders and midfielders. Andre Onana and Koby Meno made their season debuts, while Shesko started for the first time after a €85 million transfer. Despite this, the weekly wages of Manchester United’s starting eleven were equivalent to Grimsby’s entire squad value (£1.5 million). Everyone predicted a win for United, with only the margin of victory in question.

Unexpectedly, the home team Grimsby dominated from the start! In the 22nd minute, they executed a brilliant combination: Dalah Burns crossed from the right with his left foot, Charles Vinam controlled it skillfully and fired a shot into the near corner, beating Onana’s outstretched fingers to put Grimsby 1-0 ahead of Manchester United. The exquisite wing play by Grimsby’s wingers was what Red Devils fans hoped their new signings Mbemo and Cunha would deliver, but sadly, United’s attack was clumsy, and the players seemed like strangers on the pitch.

Minutes later, Grimsby scored again! From a left-sided corner into the box, Onana came out but failed to clear the ball properly, and in the ensuing scramble, Tyrell Warren pushed the ball into an empty net, making it 2-0 to Grimsby over Manchester United. Once again, the Red Devils conceded due to goalkeeper errors; in just three matches this season, Onana and Alty Baindil have both made fatal mistakes. Warren, who scored, came through Manchester United’s youth system and is friends with Rashford; they trained together this summer and might celebrate this match together.

Over 8,000 Grimsby fans at home mocked Manchester United loudly. “You’ll be sacked tomorrow morning!” “Do we play you every week?” “Premier League giants? Are you joking?” Historically, Grimsby has been a bogey team for Manchester United, holding a strong record of 6 wins, 4 draws, and 2 losses. But that was long ago; the last time the two met was in 1930. Now Grimsby plays in the fourth tier of English football and was competing in the National League, an amateur level, just a few years ago. Yet the scoreboard boldly read Grimsby 2-0 Manchester United.

Trailing by two goals at halftime, Amolin immediately made three substitutions after the break, bringing on captain Bruno Fernandes, £71 million signing Mbemo, and center-back De Ligt simultaneously. However, the situation did not improve much, and even with Mason Mount coming on later, Grimsby still created the better chances.

In the 72nd minute, Warren fired a low shot from the right wing into the far corner, scoring his second goal against his former club. Unfortunately for him, the referee ruled an offside first, sparing Manchester United. Afterwards, the nearly defeated Red Devils launched a counterattack, briefly raising the hopes of their frustrated fans who had suffered for over 70 minutes.

In the 76th minute, Mbemo cut inside from the right with his trademark dribble and curled a low shot into the bottom left corner, reducing the deficit to 2-1. This was Mbemo’s first goal since joining and also the first goal scored by a Red Devils player in this season.

In the final minute of regular time, Mount delivered a corner from the left, and Maguire headed in at the far post, leveling the score at 2-2 against Grimsby. According to League Cup rules, a draw after 90 minutes leads directly to a penalty shootout. Although Manchester United came from behind to equalize and gained momentum, the fearless home team faced no pressure. Their coach appeared relaxed during the shootout, while Amolin hid in the technical area, unable to watch.

Manchester United briefly had a chance to win on penalties when Onana saved a penalty from opponent Clark Odwol in the third round of the shootout by tipping the ball off the crossbar.

Regrettably, £62.5 million signing Cunha faltered on the fifth penalty, which would have won the match. His shot lacked angle and power and was saved by the opposing goalkeeper Christy Pym.

The shootout extended until the 13th round before a winner emerged. Mbemo, who had scored earlier, struck the ball too hard, hitting the crossbar and bouncing out. Ultimately, Manchester United lost the shootout 11-12 and were eliminated! Captain Bruno rushed to Mbemo to escort him off the pitch, while Maguire signaled teammates to quickly return to the dressing room. This was the right decision because this group of cowards had no face to show.

Amolin appeared condemned for most of the match. This humiliating defeat reminded fans of the 2014 League Cup loss under Van Gaal, when United were crushed 0-4 by League One Milton Keynes. After that match, nearly all the starters were purged by “Chef Van.”

The Dutchman had mostly fielded young players at that time. In contrast, Amolin’s squad includes only one relatively inexperienced player, center-back Tyler Fredriksen, despite Manchester United spending £416 million building the team.

Before September even arrived, fans opposing Amolin were already speculating about when he would be sacked. Manchester United supporters—whether the 1,200 at the stadium or millions watching on TV—felt disheartened at 0-0, numb at 0-1, and utterly stunned by 0-2.

Amolin publicly apologized to Manchester United fans, admitting the team’s poor performance had crossed the line. “What went wrong? Everything! We started the game the wrong way; the players seemed distracted and completely lost. At Manchester United, everything is important and closely connected to the club. We should have played better. I just want to say sorry to the fans,” said the 40-year-old Portuguese coach.

The Manchester United manager added, “I think the players’ performance today made it very clear what they want—you can easily interpret it. Let’s focus on the next game, and then there will be two weeks of international breaks to analyze carefully. Losing on penalties is not the key issue; shootouts give both teams equal chances. I believe the football today was fair, and the better team won.”

Amolin further stated, “As the coach, I should understand what happened. I apologize to the fans again. Let’s focus on the next match. It’s not just about the result; that’s the biggest problem for the team, and I think today showed that clearly. I wanted to say something smart and important, but I have nothing to say. Nothing at all, and that’s also a big problem for the team.”

He sarcastically implied the Manchester United players must take responsibility: “Seeing the same mistakes leaves me speechless. I truly feel sorry for the fans; sometimes this happens too often. You can’t change everything overnight; it’s not like everything changes after buying players in the summer window. Manchester United needs to win matches and cannot show this kind of form. I think this has gone beyond the limit. Now, we focus on preparing for Saturday’s game against Burnley and then think more deeply.”

However, Amolin defended goalkeeper Onana’s mistakes: “This is not about Andre. We should come here with the respect due. I’ve said it already—the best team won tonight, the only team that fought on the pitch. But the opponent is a fourth-tier club, so it’s not just the goalkeeper’s fault; the issues are bigger than that. He’s like everyone else. Thank you all.”

Amolin and the Manchester United players deserve all the criticism they receive; at this moment, his coaching is worse than that of an average fan. If you or I managed Manchester United, setting up a 4-2-3-1 and letting the players play freely, it wouldn’t look any worse than now. But truly fixing Manchester United’s problems is far from simple.