Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim is bidding to avoid his worst-ever season when the Red Devils head to Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday night.
A loss at Craven Cottage would be Amorim's seventh in 12 Premier League outings, and the Portuguese manager has never lost more than six league matches in a single season during his time as a head coach.
The 20-time English champions were beaten 3-1 at home by Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League last weekend, with the result leaving them down in 13th spot in the Premier League table.
Man United managed to return to winning ways in the Europa League on Thursday night, with Bruno Fernandes scoring in the final stages to hand the Red Devils a 2-1 success over Rangers.
The Red Devils are through to the fourth round of the FA Cup and in a very strong position when it comes to reaching the knockout round of the Europa League.
However, their Premier League form remains disappointing, with the club in a major battle when it comes to finishing in the top half, let alone pushing for a European spot.
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Amorim could suffer worst-ever season against Fulham
Man United have a record of seven wins, five draws and 10 defeats from their 22 Premier League matches this season, with 26 points only enough for 13th.
The 20-time English champions are 10 points above the relegation zone but 14 points from fourth-placed Chelsea, so a spot in next season's Champions League will not be secured unless the team are able to triumph in the Europa League.
Man United, despite the issues this term, are regarded as one of the favourites for the Europa League this term, and they are unbeaten in the competition this season.
The Red Devils have suffered six defeats in their last nine Premier League matches, falling behind in eight of those fixtures.
Man United have also only kept one clean sheet in their last 16 matches in all competitions, with Amorim facing a number of issues since his arrival as head coach.
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Amorim: "The detail is really important"
"It also depends on the leader of the coach, I am a lot like that and I think we need that for that feeling of belonging and for that, we also we need time to train and to stick together," Amorim told reporters during his pre-match press conference when asked about the comeback against Rangers.
"That is really important and we don't have that, I don't know the word for it in English, but the internship, the sleeping before the matches. Sometimes that detail is really important. Pre-season, spending three weeks together, creating something and then you want to create something where you know the players.
"I want them to know me in the different ways and not always preparing the match, with stress! We do not have the time to do. I think that is the secret of teams, even when you have the best players and that feeling, it is really hard to win and I wanted to build something like that here. But we need time for that."
Man United will round off their Europa League league-phase campaign against FCSB next week, before starting February with a Premier League clash against Crystal Palace.
Matt Law
