Ruben Amorim admits he is "embarrassed" Manchester United are seven points above the relegation zone at the halfway stage of the Premier League season.

United slumped to their fifth league defeat in six with a 2-0 reverse at home to Newcastle that marked the first time the club have lost three successive league matches at Old Trafford since 1978-79.

Amorim's side are only seven points above Ipswich Town, who occupy the third relegation slot. Amorim admitted United are "lost" and the club's malaise is so severe they need a "shock" after a 23rd league defeat since the start of last season.

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"Yeah, it’s also my fault in this moment because I think the team is not improving," he said when asked if he was embarrassed. "I think it’s a little bit lost in this moment, so it’s a little bit embarrassing to be a Manchester United coach and to lose a lot of games. But we have to cope with difficult moments in the life of everybody, so it’s a hard moment.

"When you have these kind of moments, especially in the big clubs, you work really hard to turn things around, especially when you don’t have a lot of time to train the basics to cope with the difficult moments.

"So we have to acknowledge our position the way you see the league, that everybody can beat everybody, so we have to win games and to focus on surviving.

"I’m responsible, I don’t like to arrive here and make excuses. I think people are tired of excuses in this club and I think sometimes I talk about relegation because of that.

"I think our club needs a shock, you know? It needs a shock and we have to understand that. It’s a very difficult moment and we have to fight for the next game and implement the idea to win games.

"And also to have a performance because I think we are losing some things from the last games."

United have lost their last three games without scoring and their goal difference is now -5 with the team languishing in 14th place. They could drop down to 15th by the time they kick off against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.

League leaders Liverpool annihilated United 7-0 at Anfield two seasons ago and many supporters will dread a similar thrashing at the weekend. United are winless at Anfield in nine, having last won there in January 2016.

"It’s really hard," Amorim added. "I think it’s really hard on everybody and you can feel it on the pitch. I think we showed some improvements in the first games, especially against City, Tottenham and even at Arsenal in the first half.

"But we are losing that with the lack of training and the lack of belief after so many losses and some difficult moments, you suffer some goals in the beginning of games and then it’s really hard during all the games.

"It’s a really tough moment for everybody and I think the players losing everything, the small things we try to work on in training, they lose everything. They don’t have time to build the base to cope with difficult moments, so it’s really hard in this moment."