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When you cannot win, avoid defeat - as the proverb states.

Before their visit to Nottingham Forest, Man Utd had earned merely 8 points from deficit situations with Ruben Amorim. They had not got any from the previous six matches when they were losing since the match to AFC Bournemouth last spring, when a late goal snatched a draw.

When they found themselves trailing at the stadium after letting in two goals in a short span, as Nottingham Forest reversed a disputed first-half opener, Manchester United were in serious trouble.

The inquiry to the manager after his side fought back to tie could not have been more straightforward.

'If that game happened last season, do you believe it would have ended in defeat?'

The response was just as forceful.

"Yes, and by a larger margin, I believe so."

We can never know the reality. What we do know that Amad Diallo showed why the coach picks him at wing-back by flashing home a sensational first-time volley from near the edge of the box late in the game to secure a point.

It's been clear since the beginning of the campaign that Manchester United are performing at a higher level this season. Since the beginning of October, they have also been achieving more positive outcomes.

The determination, the desire, the refusal to give in are intangibles.

In this game, Amorim believed his players demonstrated they have improved at that too.

"In the past, if we had this kind of bad five minutes and we suffered two goals, we don't recover," said the coach. "Now is a different feeling. You can sense we could not win this game but we are not going to lose. And that is a feeling a big team sometimes has to have."

Amorim didn't mention it, but the arrival of the Brazilian forward and the winger probably made a difference.

The attacker is not the type to retreat from challenging circumstances, actually the opposite in fact. In the first half, when he was jeered by the local supporters for what they felt was his gamesmanship, he reacted - rather than ignore it - pointing to the crest on his kit.

Mbeumo is a energetic nuisance, the epitome of a player who will not give an opponent a moment's peace.

The coach was questioned precisely what had caused the psychological growth. Apart from saying the self-belief generated from the prior three successive wins, he didn't really give an answer.

"The confidence, naturally, is totally different," he said. "Following three positive performances and we have a newfound assurance. We understand one another better. We communicate increased about this.

"We proved this season we can have difficult periods but suddenly, we have three strong performances.

"We just need to remain engaged in the match until the final 10 minutes. Previously, we could have collapsed completely the way we performed in the encounter. Today, the feeling was different."

Uncertainty Lingers Over Futures of Zirkzee and Mainoo

If this was a occasion when the team displayed their resilience, it was also a day that must have left the Dutch forward and the young midfielder even more uncertain of their futures in the manager's revamped Manchester United.

In his before the game media briefing, the coach stated it was possible members of the squad who think they are at danger of not making the World Cup will ask to leave in the January signing period.

One can reasonably conclude Zirkzee and the midfielder fit into that bracket. Zirkzee has managed 82 minutes from his four Premier League cameo roles in the current campaign. For the young player, the total is over two hours from seven.

Neither has begun a league game so far and nor were they asked to be substituted on at the stadium, as the team chased a way back into a game they were trailing in from the second half.

"We have a great deal of quality on the substitutes but sometimes I have the feeling if I'm going to stop the flow all the time, I'm going to interrupt the rhythm," explained the manager. "We were improving during the later stages, so my feeling was not to change anything with the guys in attack."

The midfielder had a deal in progress to move to Napoli in the final stages of the transfer period but United would not approve a transfer. The striker was coming back from a fitness issue but is currently open to the possibility of a move back to Serie A.

The situation is complicated by the loss of the winger and Amad to the Africa Cup of Nations in the middle of the winter, a period which includes a couple of weekday matches which will require a degree of squad changes not previously needed.

Since the final is on January 18th, the pair are expected to be returned well before the signing period ends on 2 February - which may mean a later resolution than any eager to leave individual would like.

"This is about the characteristics of the game," commented the coach, when questioned directly about the forward and Mainoo. "The players understand it's just a moment.

"It's nothing to do with ability - and we have a lot of games."