Amad Diallo says he will do everything he can to keep Manchester United moving up the Premier League table, after scoring a 12-minute hat-trick to rescue his team as they came from 1-0 down to beat Southampton 3-1 at Old Trafford.
The hosts were outplayed in the first half with Manuel Ugarte’s own goal giving the division’s bottom-placed side the lead just before half-time.
It was fully deserved for Southampton, who were thwarted on a number of occasions by Andre Onana – with a sensational double save from Tyler Dibling and Mateus Fernandes seeing the United goalkeeper compared to Peter Schmeichel.
It took until the 82nd minute for the pattern of the game to change, when Amad benefited from a ricochet in the box which allowed him to continue his run with the ball at his feet before firing low past Aaron Ramsdale to equalise.
Then, as the clock ticked into injury time, Amad struck again as he connected with a sumptuous, chipped pass from Christian Eriksen to volley into the net on the stretch.
The Ivorian completed his first senior hat-trick four minutes later as he pounced on a heavy touch from Southampton defender Taylor Harwood-Bellis, before rolling the ball into an empty net.
Speaking to TNT Sports after the match, Diallo said: “In football, you have to believe it and we believed until the end. “We are very happy to win this game because we draw against Liverpool and Arsenal, so the confidence was there.
“We have quality players in this team. We need sometimes to be more hungry in the final third, and today we showed at the end we were the best team on the pitch. I’m so happy for the win today because this team deserved it.”
Asked if it was among the best moments he has experienced, Diallo said: “Maybe one of the best weeks of my life but like I said, I’m very happy for this win because this team deserved to win this game so I’m very happy.”
The goals were Diallo’s seventh, eighth and ninth of an impressive campaign, in which he has been one of United’s star performers.
“I’m ready to play every position. I’m ready to play right wing back, No. 10, wherever the manager likes to put me.
“I’m ready to fight for this club, so I never matter where I am. I’m so happy to play where the manager wanted me to play.
“I’m so happy to score a hat-trick and the most important thing is the win for the club,” he said.
United are now up to 12th in the Premier League table.
Amorim concerned by ‘lack of control’
Despite watching his team fight back to win – and avoid a third successive home defeat – manager Ruben Amorim admitted he still has a lot of work to do with the squad he inherited after arriving from Sporting CP.
“In the end, it’s good. Very difficult game. A game of duels, same system,” he told TNT Sports.
“They did a very good job, Southampton, creating space between the lines and the No. 20 (Kamaldeen Sulemana) with a lot of space behind, we had a lot of difficulties to stop that player.
“The feeling is we have so much to do. I felt the team [were] really tired because Liverpool, Arsenal 120 minutes, and then it’s not just tired the physical part of the players, it’s the mental part of the players. So it was a win, it’s good, let’s continue.
“We didn’t do a very good game but, in this moment, winning is the most important thing.
“I want to be fair with my players. Today was not a lack of enthusiasm, it was a lack of speed and sometimes a lack of control of the game.”
Amorim remains determined to make his favoured 3-4-3 system work but knows he may need some changes in personnel to ensure that is a success.
“The profile sometimes, you can understand, is not the right ones, but we have to improve players.”
