Matheus Cunha: 'The mood at MU right now is terrible'

MU continues to sink deeper into crisis after losing 1-3 at Brentford. This is already the Red Devils' third loss in this season's competition, and the mood in the locker room was described as “terrible” by striker Matheus Cunha.

Gtech Community Stadium has become a genuine nightmare for Manchester United. Brentford have won 3 of their last 4 home games against MU, including the famous 4-0 victory during Erik ten Hag’s first season. Although the London side is now managed by Keith Andrews instead of Thomas Frank, the disappointing pattern for MU remains unchanged.

Matheus Cunha, the expensive signing from Wolves this summer, has yet to make a significant impact. The defeat at Brentford has only increased the pressure on the Brazilian forward. Speaking after the match on TNT Sports, Cunha expressed his frustration:

“The mood right now is really awful. Truly dreadful. I always say, we understand what it means to play for a club like this and we go into every match aiming to win. Ending like this feels very bad. Everyone wants to do more and everyone needs to do more. We have to get back up, that’s the only way.”

The Brazilian player also refused to blame any external factors: “Looking for excuses is not the way. We know what we have to do. I think the whole team didn’t perform well. They were more energetic, they tackled hard and scored, but that can’t be an excuse. They played exactly how they wanted and we couldn’t stop them.”

Cunha showed dissatisfaction with the referee’s decisions in two specific situations. First was the play leading to Brentford’s opening goal, where he was closely pressured and lost the ball before Igor Thiago scored: “I felt like someone pushed me from behind.”

Later, Cunha believed Nathan Collins should have been shown a red card for fouling Bryan Mbeumo inside the penalty area. However, the referees only gave a yellow card, reasoning that Mbeumo did not have control of the ball at the moment of contact. Cunha commented: “I think it should have been a red card, everyone can make mistakes. I’m not sure if it was a mistake or not. After the game, you usually think things should go your way but you have to face the truth.”

This loss raises further doubts about coach Ruben Amorim’s ability to turn things around. The Portuguese manager still hasn’t led MU to two consecutive Premier League wins, and the team settling in the mid-table is becoming the norm.

A rare positive was Benjamin Sesko scoring his first goal for the club, albeit a somewhat fortunate one. However, the attacking trio of Sesko – Cunha – Mbeumo still lacks clear connection and effectiveness. There is still time for adaptation, but pressure on Amorim is mounting quickly.