SPL boss makes damning observation about Man United’s Jekyll and Hyde performance vs AS Roma

Dundee manager Steven Pressley has revealed what he told his players after Manchester United’s dramatic comeback against AS Roma, a message Michael Carrick’s men ought to take note of.

Sensational turnaround

United have made a dreadful start to the 2026/27 campaign, and their woeful sequence looked set to persist earlier this week in their meeting with Roma.

The Red Devils found themselves 2-0 down inside 17 minutes, with Matías Soulé and Donyell Malen finding the back of the net. Both goals came about as a result of extremely poor defending.

United received a lifeline on the hour mark via Bruno Fernandes’s penalty conversion. Having missed his initial attempt, he was granted a second bite of the apple due to an encroachment offence, and he duly made no mistake at the second time of asking.

The hosts huffed and puffed and eventually restored parity in the 83rd minute when Matheus Cunha pounced on a missed clearance to fire home from close range.

Cunha completed the turnaround three minutes later, connecting with a sublime pass from Shea Lacey and hammering home from a tight angle. The Brazilian was then sent off in stoppage time for a needless challenge on Leonardo Balerdi.

United held on for all three points and a much-needed confidence boost. The difference between the first half and the second was immense. United appeared dead and buried in the first half, delivering a miserable performance that has become all too familiar this season.

But in the second, they were almost a different side and Roma could not cope with them. This did not go unnoticed by Pressley, who observed that United simply exerted more effort and covered more ground, a message he conveyed to his players.

Telling message

The Dundee gaffer told The Courier, “I spoke to the group and asked them had they seen the Manchester United game.”

“Because everyone loves to talk about tactics but then I watch that game and I see a team losing 2-0 at half time and what was the change?”

He added, “They ran harder in the second half, they played with more energy.”

“Of course tactics is important, I’m not disregarding that, but I think that we can never underestimate that if you want to win football games you have to do the basics of the game very well.”

“Just now we have a league where the margins are so fine and if you don’t do the basics, if you don’t outrun your opponent, if you don’t win your duels, you don’t win games.”

United are next in action on Sunday when they host Aston Villa.

Featured image by Carl Recine via Getty Images