Manchester United suffered another defeat in the Premier League, putting them in a precarious position as the league reaches the halfway point.

Ruben Amorim’s side was beaten 2-0 by Newcastle United at Old Trafford on Sunday, leaving them 14th.

The Portuguese coach, who took over from Erik ten Hag last month, said his team could be in a relegation battle.

Are Man United in relegation fight?

Man United were last relegated from the English top flight 50 years ago. If things don’t improve, they could go down for the first time in Premier League history.

Last season, they recorded their worst finish in Premier League history, but if things don’t improve, it could be worse this season.

At the halfway point, they are 14th with 22 points: six wins, four draws and nine defeats.

Amorim’s side have lost the last four matches in a row and six of their last eight. They’ve also lost three consecutive home games for the first time since 1979, per Sky Sports.

Since the Portuguese coach took charge last month, he has overseen just four wins in 11 matches.

Amorim on relegation threat

The Red Devils were poor in the first half against Newcastle United, and things could’ve been worse.

The introduction of Kobbie Mainoo helped the hosts gain some control. However, they struggled to create chances. Amorim fears his team is in a relegation fight.

BBC Sport asked the former Sporting CP if his team was in a battle to avoid the drop.

“I think that it is a possibility. We have to be clear with our fans.”

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He was also asked if it was embarrassing to talk about relegation as a Man United coach.

“It is also my fault,” he said. “The team is not improving. It is a little bit lost in this moment and it is a bit embarrassing to be Manchester United coach and lose a lot of games. I think people are tired of excuses at this club. This club needs a shock.”

Why Amorim took Zirkzee off

TUKO.co.ke earlier reported that Amorim explained his reasoning for subbing Joshua Zirkzee in the first half against Newcastle.

The 39-year-old said he was thinking about the team when he replaced him with Kobbie Mainoo in the 33rd minute.

Wayne Rooney’s tenure as head coach of Plymouth Argyle has come to an end following a disappointing nine-match winless streak.

The Manchester United legend leaves the Pilgrims at the bottom of the Championship table, four points from safety. The club announced the decision on Monday, describing it as a mutual agreement between Rooney and the board.

Rooney, who previously managed Derby County and DC United, now faces another managerial setback, with his Plymouth appointment lasting only a few months since his arrival in the summer. Alongside Rooney, assistant coach Mike Phelan and first-team coach Stephen Ireland have also stepped down.

In a statement, Rooney expressed his gratitude and reflected on his brief spell at the club.

“I want to thank the Board of Plymouth Argyle Football Club, particularly Simon Hallett and Neil Dewsnip, for their support and strong relationships. My appreciation also goes to the staff, players, and fans for making me feel welcome and contributing to the special atmosphere at the club. I will always hold Plymouth Argyle close to my heart and will continue to follow their progress,” he said.

During Rooney’s time in charge, Plymouth managed just four wins in 23 matches, leading to increasing pressure and calls for change despite early optimism surrounding his appointment.

Club chairman Simon Hallett acknowledged Rooney’s dedication in a statement, saying, “Wayne Rooney joined us with great experience and ambition, and we hoped for a successful season. Sadly, the results didn’t reflect the hard work and commitment of Wayne and his team. We part ways amicably and wish him all the best in his future endeavors.”

As fans expressed mixed emotions, appreciating Rooney’s efforts to introduce an attractive playing style despite the poor results, attention now turns to Plymouth’s search for a new manager. Meanwhile, Rooney faces uncertainty about his next step in what has been a challenging managerial career so far.

Former Liverpool, Barcelona and Tottenham stars are among the seven brilliant players we believe are simply too good to be playing in Brazil.

The Brazilian Serie A is always plenty of fun to keep up with. The league is packed with rising ballers and older stars of years gone by who are playing out the final years of their careers.

We’ve taken a closer look at the league and have found seven players who we can’t believe are currently playing in Brazil.

Philippe Coutinho

There was a time when Coutinho was one of the most feared creative forces in the Premier League. That five-year stint at Liverpool was scary good, and ultimately resulted in Barcelona splashing an initial £105million to sign him in 2018.

We all know that panned out. We don’t need to recount such a monumental failure.

Coutinho is now turning out for boyhood side Vasco da Gama on loan from Aston Villa and still produces moments to take the breath away.

Felipe Anderson

After two seasons at West Ham, a sneaky little loan at Porto, and a combined eight years at Lazio, Felipe Anderson has finally returned to the Brasileirao.

He was absolutely mustard in that first season at West Ham. Untouchable, at times. A dip in form toward the end of his second season resulted in that loan to Porto, and that didn’t go too smoothly either.

The Brazilian picked himself back up and helped Lazio to a second-place Serie A finish in 2022-23.

Anderson signed for Palmeiras this summer and has produced snippets of jaw-dropping class back in his home country.

Martin Braithwaite

Braithwaite is one of the most interesting men in football. The ex-Middlesbrough and Barcelona forward, gazillionaire, potential future owner of Espanyol—out of pure spite, and Denmark international signed for Gremio in the summer of 2024.

Scored twice on his league debut as well.

Braithwaite’s new team aren’t pulling up many trees in the Brazilian league, but he’s scored eight goals and provided two assists in 18 appearances and could probably still be playing in Europe.

READ NEXT: An XI of electrifying Brazilian wonderkids on Football Manager 2024: Santos, Savio, Endrick…

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name every member of Brazil’s 2002 World Cup Squad?

Gerson

Gerson returned to Brazil in December last year, following stints in Europe with Roma and Marseille.

The 27-year-old has a good eye for goal and has chipped in with plenty of goal contributions from midfield since his return to Flamengo. He could probably do a job in a more high-profile league.

Matheus Pereira

The streets won’t forget Pereira and his magical stint with West Brom. After leaving the Baggies, the Brazilian joined Saudi outfit Al-Hilal, although it didn’t take long until he was eyeing up the exit door.

Seemingly unhappy with his situation in Saudi Arabia, the 28-year-old has spent the last couple of seasons out on loan.

He’s now back in Brazil with Cruzeiro, having spent time on loan with the club last year. We sure would love to see him back in England one day.

QUIZ: Can you name every player from Brazil to score 5+ Premier League goals?

Giorgian de Arrascaeta

De Arrascaeta continues to produce the goods for Flamengo and is arguably the best player playing outside of Europe.

Since moving to the club in 2019, the Uruguayan attacking midfielder has chipped in with 146 goal contributions in 290 matches which is some return. He’s still only 30 too.

Lucas Moura

After spending over a decade in Europe with PSG and Tottenham, Moura made an emotional return to Sao Paulo in 2023.

Since arriving back in Brazil, the 32-year-old has managed to get his hands on a couple of trophies as Sao Paulo won the Copa do Brasil and Supercopa do Brasil in quick succession.