New Delhi: Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim gave a death stare as he snapped back at a reporter over his question on goalkeeper Altay Bayindir after his side’s 1-0 loss to Arsenal in their opening match of the Premier League 2025-26 season. United were arguably the better team on the day, but failed to take their chances as they slipped to defeat against the last season’s runners-up.
Amorim backed Bayindir over first-choice goalkeeper Andre Onana and senior shot stopper Tom Heaton for the big game against Arsenal. While the decision left many surprised, it was understandable as Onana recently recovered from an injury and didn’t feature in any of United’s pre-season matches. However, Amorim didn’t agree to the suggestion that he should have played the more experienced Heaton over Bayindir.
Bayindir conceded from a corner in the 13th minute after getting outmuscled by Arsenal centre-back William Saliba. Saliba’s challenge on Bayindir allowed left-back Riccardo Calafiori to head home Arsenal’s first goal in the game and put them 1-0 up. The goal proved decisive as it turned out to be the difference between the two teams in the end.
In the post-match press conference, Amorim was asked about the costly error from Bayindir and whether he would consider dropping the young keeper for veteran Heaton. The question didn’t go down well with the United manager, who hit back at the reporter and reminded him of Bayindir’s terrific performance against Arsenal in the FA Cup last year.
“Why?” Amorim snapped back at the reporter after being asked about replacing Bayindir with Heaton. “But [Altay] suffered a goal like this, where?”. “Spurs,” replied the reporter. The United manager responded: “Without VAR. With VAR, it’s a foul. Then what happened in the next game? Arsenal. Who saved the penalty? Who saved all the game? Altay was unbelievable. I consider everything to put one or the other, and I chose Altay,” he added.
‘WHO SAVED THE PENALTY? WHO SAVED THE GAME?’ 🧤 😡 | FURIOUS Ruben Amorim pic.twitter.com/zWLXkde0Dj
— BeanymanSports (@BeanymanSports) August 17, 2025
Amorim also suggested that Bayindir was fouled by Saliba during the corner, leading to Arsenal’s first goal. He questioned the Arsenal defender’s tactics and said Bayindir couldn’t have defended himself as he was focused on the ball and was using his hands in trying to stop the ball from going into the back of the net.
“When you touch the goalkeeper in that way, he needs to use his hands to catch the ball, not push players. Or if he chooses, push players and let the ball go past. If that’s allowed, then we need to do the same. He chose to get the ball, so he cannot defend himself,” said Amorim.
Altay Bayındır kornerden gelen çelmek isterken Arsenale asist yaptı
Calafiori dokunmasa kendi kalesine atıyordupic.twitter.com/IinMGWN2X0— KAAN GEDİK (@ekgedik1903) August 17, 2025
I didn’t drop Andre Onana: Amorim
The United manager also clarified that he didn’t want Onana to start against Arsenal as he it has been just one week since he recovered and joined training. Amorim said he couldn’t have risked Onana without him getting match fit and getting proper training time.
“I didn’t drop Onana. It’s not about putting Andre Onana in with just one week, without seeing a game, without proper training time. I’m happy with the three goalkeepers,” he clarified.
Despite their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal, United showed signs of progression as there were glimpses of Amorim’s system finally coming into full effect. The United manager handed out debuts to all three of his new forward signings against Arsenal. While Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha started, striker Benjamin Sesko came off the bench for Mason Mount in the second half.
Cunha was particularly impressive on his Premier League debut for United and troubled the Arsenal defence constantly. Mebumo and Sesko also looked decent during their stay in the middle. However, none of them failed to break the deadlock to help United salvage a draw in the game.