Manchester United defender Diogo Dalot has responded to claims from co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe that some Old Trafford stars are “not good enough” and “overpaid”, while also insisting that progress is being made under Ruben Amorim.
During a recent interview with the BBC, Ratcliffe was particularly critical of the club’s recruitment policy and the fact they had signed players who should not be in the current squad, while also suggesting some are paid too much.
Indeed, the 72-year-old said: “Some [players] are not good enough and some probably are overpaid, but for us to mold the squad that we are fully responsible for, and accountable for, will take time.
“We’ve got this period of transformation where we move from the past to the future. There are some great players in the squad as we know, the captain is a fabulous footballer. We definitely need Bruno [Fernandes] – he’s a fantastic footballer.”
But, when asked about Ratcliffe’s comments, Dalot stressed that it was up to the players to take responsibility for how Man Utd progress going forward.
The Portugal international said: “Ultimately this club will progress through what we do on the pitch, so we are all responsible for the future and the momentum of the club.
“We know that we have that responsibility but we want to take it.
‘The pressure is high but we are Manchester United players for a reason. We want to change things ourselves. It is clear that when you are 14th in the league, we are not doing what we should, so we want to change that.
“If we want to put Manchester United back on top we need to do much better.”
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Man Utd making progress under Amorim
Dalot also insists that United are finally showing progress under Amorim, as he spoke ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash against Leicester City.
He added: “I think you are now seeing a much better team than a couple of months ago. I think it’s clear, When we talk about needing time, we aren’t saying that just to buy time. Obviously, it’s difficult when you play for a club like this because you must improve by always winning.
“The pressure is always high to win every game and when the results don’t come, it is difficult to show progress. But I think in the last couple of games, you have seen something different. There have been different styles of play, but overall we are improving. It’s something everyone can see – but results will ultimately show our position.”
Dalot, who has been at United since 2018 and worked under seven different managers, also believes that the desire for transformation within the club feels different this time around.
“You can see this is a period of change, especially since INEOS have come in,” he added. “You can see there’s a different approach in terms of building a new structure around the club. It’s clear. Everybody sees it and whether you like it or not, you can see some changes – and it’s something different that we haven’t seen before.
“So you can see that the club wants to go in a direction where they want to rebuild Manchester Utd and put Manchester Utd back on top. So I hope in the next couple of years, we can go there.”
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