{'A Different Feeling' - Did Man Utd Shown a Attitude Change?

When you cannot triumph, don't lose - so the old saying goes.

Before their trip to Forest, Man Utd had secured just eight points from losing positions with Ruben Amorim. They had not got a single point from the previous six games when they trailed since the match to Bournemouth last spring, when a late effort snatched a tie.

When they were behind at the City Ground after letting in two goals in a short span, as Forest overturned a disputed opening period goal, United were in serious trouble.

The question to the manager after his side recovered to draw could not have been more straightforward.

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

The response was just as decisive.

"Yes, and by more goals, in my opinion."

It's impossible to determine the reality. What we do know that the young player demonstrated why Amorim selects him at wing-back by flashing home a spectacular first-time volley from near the edge of the box nine minutes from time to earn a point.

It's been clear since the start of the campaign that Manchester United are playing better this term. Since the beginning of October, they have also been getting better results.

The determination, the desire, the unwillingness to surrender are intangibles.

In this match, Amorim felt his players showed they have improved at that as well.

"In the past, if we had this kind of bad short period and we suffered two goals, we don't recover," said Amorim. "Now is a different sensation. It's evident we could not win this game but we are determined not to be defeated. And that is a mindset a major club sometimes has to have."

Amorim didn't mention it, but the signing of Matheus Cunha and the winger must have helped.

The attacker is not the type to retreat from challenging circumstances, on the contrary in fact. In the opening period, when he was jeered by the home fans for what they felt was his gamesmanship, he reacted - instead of ignoring them - gesturing toward the crest on his shorts.

The forward is a hustle-bustle menace, the epitome of a footballer who will never allow an opponent a moment's peace.

The coach was questioned exactly what had caused the mental improvement. Beyond mentioning the confidence generated from the prior three consecutive victories, he didn't provide an explanation.

"The confidence, naturally, is completely changed," he said. "We came from three good games and we have a different assurance. We understand one another more effectively. We communicate increased about this.

"We demonstrated this season we can experience bad moments but suddenly, we produce three good games.

"It's essential to be inside the game until the final 10 minutes. In the past, we could have lost everything the way we played the encounter. Today, the feeling was not that one."

Uncertainty Remains Regarding Prospects of the striker and the midfielder

If this was a day when the team showed their fighting spirit, it was also a day that must have left the Dutch forward and the young midfielder increasingly unsure of their roles in the manager's revamped Manchester United.

In his pre-match press conference, the coach stated it was likely players who think they are at risk of not making the international tournament will ask to leave in the winter transfer window.

One can reasonably conclude Zirkzee and Mainoo fit into that category. The forward has managed less than two full games from his four top-flight cameo roles this season. For Mainoo, the number is 138 from seven.

Neither has started a Premier League game this season and neither were they asked to come off the bench at the stadium, as United sought a way back into a contest they were losing from the second half.

"We have a lot of quality on the bench but sometimes I have the feeling if I'm going to disrupt the flow all the time, I'm going to interrupt the rhythm," said Amorim. "We were improving during the second half, so my feeling was to avoid altering anything with the guys in attack."

The midfielder had a agreement in progress to join the Italian club in the final stages of the transfer period but the club would not sanction a deal. The striker was coming back from injury but is now considering the idea of a move back to Serie A.

The situation is made more complex by the absence of Mbeumo and the wing-back to the continental tournament in the middle of December, a period which includes a couple of weekday matches which will demand a level of rotation not previously needed.

As the final is on January 18th, the duo should be back long before the transfer window ends on 2 February - which may mean a later resolution than what eager to leave individual would like.

"It is the demands of the sport," commented Amorim, when asked directly about the forward and Mainoo. "They know it's only a phase.

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