Jamie Carragher has launched a blistering attack on , saying he "nearly burst out laughing" when talked up their mentality recently.

The Red Devils plucked from Sporting Lisbon in November to . But the Portuguese coach - who was one of the most sought-after managers in Europe - has struggled to transform the club's fortunes.

United have taken just 11 points from as many games since Amorim arrived on Sunday. And tore into United's flops after Amorim admitted that the current crop of players .

After questioning Amorim for making such a damning comment, Carragher said on Sky Sports: "I've got not much sympathy for the players in that Manchester United dressing room, they've been a joke for a few years now.

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"A few weeks ago after they played there was an interview with Lisandro Martinez where he was talking about the mentality and tapping his head. I nearly burst out laughing when I saw that to be honest, the amount of times Manchester United have basically threw the towel in with bad performances over the past four or five years.

"From the manager's point of view how can he go into the dressing room between now and the end of the season and continually build them up and give them belief, if he's said they're one of the worst teams in Manchester United history.

"I'd be very surprised if the powers-that-be above him aren't having a strong word with him. You can't speak like that as manager of Manchester United. You don't pour petrol on the flames."

Do you agree with Carragher's verdict on Man Utd?

The Red Devils are currently languishing in the bottom half of the Premier League table after failing to make up for their rotten start to the season under Ten Hag, who was sacked in October - just months after being handed a contract extension.

United are 13th in the table - 10 points above the relegation zone - and Carragher says Amorim's brutal blast was one of the most "bizarre" things he's ever seen from a manager.

"Why you would make a comment like that… that's the type of comment a pundit would make, someone in my position, and you'd have to defend that. I don't know what he gains from that, what the benefit is," Carragher said.

"We all know it's a poor Man Utd team. They'd lost another game at home to , they'd done that in the last couple of years anyway. We know it's a tough season, we know it's a poor team. He has just loosened it up. That will be a quote that follows him for the rest of the season.

"He said to the journalists there, 'I'll give you your headline'. Why you would like to do that as a manager, I'll never know."

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