Zirkzee-inspired Manchester United storms Palace
Ruben Amorim highlighted the "influence" of Joshua Zirkzee after his goal in Manchester United's comeback win over Crystal Palace.
The Red Devils trailed to Jean-Philippe Mateta's first-half penalty at Selhurst Park, but goals from Zirkzee and Mason Mount after the break completed a spirited turnaround, while sealing a 2-1 victory.
It marked United's first win in London in seven attempts, and it was only the second time it had won a Premier League game under Amorim when trailing 1-0 at the break.
Zirkzee's goal came almost a year since his most recent top-flight strike, which came courtesy of a brace during a 4-0 victory over Everton on December 1, 2024.
"Scoring is important, but it's not just the goals," Amorim said of the Netherlands international. "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.
"We have more players in the squad who can score. I'm really happy with them. Joshua hasn't had many minutes and Mason works really hard."
Amorim was pleased by the second-half response from his side, who subsequently climbed back into the top six – not that he is getting carried away just yet.
"It was small details that helped," he said. "The pace and intensity was better in the second half. I could see 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.
"We weren't near our own box and, in the second half, we touched every first ball and then got the second. We took advantage of a tired opponent.
"In this moment, I just want to evaluate our team. We need to evolve and create variety in how we build up – that's the most important thing."
