Ruben Amorim says Manchester United’s players have been struck by fear during matches and he is looking to the club’s supporters, as well as his own family, to lift the darkening mood around Old Trafford.

United travel to Liverpool on Sunday with the gap between the two fierce rivals 23 points after 19 games played. While Arne Slot has breathed new life into Liverpool this season, Amorim’s start at United has been littered with problems and poor results.

With United tipped to suffer a fifth straight defeat in all competitions at Anfield, Amorim has been tasked with lifting players’ spirits after admitting they were feeling anxious during Monday’s 2-0 home defeat by Newcastle. “They are sometimes afraid on the pitch,” he said.

“So we have to cope with that. We need the leaders to step up to help the other guys – and I’m the most responsible person here to improve the performances. You can see the players are trying. Sometimes they are too anxious and too afraid to play football because this is a difficult moment.”

The former Sporting coach is the latest to feel the strain of managing United but revealed he has been boosted by the arrival of his family over the festive period. Amorim’s wife and two children touched down in Manchester on 27 December. “It was a good day,” said the United manager, who joked that the effects of his new job may already be visible in his appearance. “You can see in my face, you can compare the way I arrived and now,” he said.

“Of course when you are [losing] there is a lot of pressure. It is hard to cope with all the problems, the bad performances and the losses, it is really hard. It is supposed to be really hard. The only thing that can help me is training with the players and I also have my family now here so it’s so much different, it can help me.”

Joshua Zirkzee was among the United players to receive jeers from sections of the Old Trafford crowd during the Newcastle game, but Amorim praised fans for their support in the second half as the Stretford End repeatedly chanted the manager’s name.

“What happened in the second half, it’s unbelievable. The supporters can look at the table and we lose four in [a] row. But the supporters were amazing,” he said. “I cannot ask anything from the support. Maybe a little bit more patience. They’ve had a lot during these last years. They are tired of this moment and we need to do our job to help the supporters.”