‘Not used to losing’ – Noussair Mazraoui shares painful assessment on his debut Man Utd season

Noussair Mazraoui has spoken out on his debut season with Manchester United, stating how painful it is to see the team lose on various occasion.

Mazraoui joined United from Bayern Munich in a €15 million (£12.8m/$17m) deal with potential add-ons of €5 million (£4.2m/$6m), however, his arrival has not yield the expected result.

Having won three Eredivisie titles with Ajax before lifting the Bundesliga trophy with Bayern, Mazraoui’s only hope of winning a title this season lies on United beating Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final.

United currently languish in 16th place in the Premier League table, an unfamiliar position for a club of their stature. And given Mazraoui’s previous experiences with Bayern and Ajax, adjusting to a team fighting in the lower half of the Premier League has been a jarring experience.

Noussair Mazraoui of Manchester United in action during the Premier League match between Manchester United FC and Everton FC at Old Trafford (Photo by Zohaib Alam – MUFC/Manchester United via Getty Images)

“Am I hurting? Of course, I am,” Mazraoui admitted to reporters. “I come from clubs where I’m not used to losing, I will never get used to losing whereever I am as well as here. It’s a painful moment but life is sometimes painful and you just have to go through it.”

Though United are anticipating the Europa League final against Tottenham, Mazraoui was clear that European success wouldn’t mask the shortcomings of the Premier League campaign.

“The Europa League season will be a success, the PL season will still not be a success,” he said. “Those are the facts. At the end you pay a price. There are both sides. There are a lot of competition you play in, in PL you play week in, week out so eventually people will set their opinion more according to the Premier League.”

While Mazraoui remains realistic about the team’s overall performance, he acknowledges the emotional value a Europa League triumph would bring.

“It would be less painful, your pain will be less, you get a hug for yourself. That’s basically it,” he admitted. “It’s a hard season, this is my first in the Premier League without a winter break, playing almost every single minute I’ve played more than in any season, physically it’s very demanding, but mentally as well.”

While Ruben Amorim’s team will focus on their Europa League final against Tottenham, the Red Devils are scheduled to take on Chelsea in a Premier League clash on Friday, before making the trip to Bilbao on May 21 for the Europa League showdown.