Man Utd match Arsenal record as Joe Cole calls for Ruben Amorim to be given ‘credit’

Joe Cole has called for Ruben Amorim to be given ‘credit’ after Manchester United matched one of Arsenal’s records on Sunday.

The Red Devils came from behind to defeat Crystal Palace 2-1 at Selhurst Park following second-half goals from Mason Mount and Joshua Zirkzee.

Both goals came from Bruno Fernandes’ set-pieces with United having now equalled Arsenal on 10 set-piece goals in the Premier League this term, excluding penalties.

Speaking after the match, football pundit Cole told TNT Sports that Amorim deserves ‘credit’ for matching Arsenal’s set-piece record.

‘You have to give the manager (Ruben Amorim) credit – and his staff,’ Cole said.

‘He’s come under a lot of fire when the results haven’t been deemed to be where they should be.

‘But that’s a positive to be up there with Arsenal. Everyone has been patting Mikel Arteta on the back but fair play to Manchester United.

‘When you’ve got Bruno Fernandes’ delivery and people like Harry Maguire and Casemiro heading it… You don’t need to be a rocket scientist.

‘Great deliveries and great players attacking the ball – they’ve got that.’

Amorim: It was the small details that helped

Quizzed for his thoughts on United’s comeback win over Palace, Amorim told the BBC: ‘It was the small details that helped.

‘The pace and intensity was better in the second half. I could see that Palace were getting tired at the end of the first half and knew they would suffer if we scored.

‘We went on to control the game well away from our goal and in the opposition half.

‘We controlled the game well but just have to be careful about what we did in the first half.’

Before today’s match, Zirkzee hadn’t scored a Premier League goal since a brace against Everton in December 2024 – 364 days ago.

Asked about the striker ending his drought, Amorim added: ‘Scoring is important but it’s not just the goals.

‘They give confidence but Joshua has also improved a lot in how he holds the ball. That should give him a lot of confidence.

‘He influences the game and that’s important to our game. He needs to maintain that level in training.’