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If you can't triumph, don't lose - as the proverb states.

Prior to their trip to Forest, Manchester United had gained merely 8 points from deficit situations with their manager. They had not got a single point from the past six games when they trailed since the trip to Bournemouth last April, when a late effort secured a draw.

When they went down at the stadium after letting in two goals in a couple of minutes, as Forest reversed a controversial first-half opener, Manchester United were staring down the barrel.

The question to the manager after his side fought back to tie could not have been any clearer.

'If that game happened the previous campaign, do you believe it would have ended in defeat?'

The response was equally forceful.

"Absolutely, and by more goals, I believe so."

We can never know the reality. However, we do know that Amad Diallo showed why Amorim selects him at wing-back by scoring a spectacular volleyed strike from near the edge of the box late in the game to earn a draw.

It has been obvious since the start of the season that United are performing at a higher level this season. Since the beginning of autumn, they have also been achieving more positive outcomes.

The determination, the will, the unwillingness to surrender are unquantifiables.

In this match, the manager felt his players demonstrated they have improved at that as well.

"In the past, if we had this kind of bad short period and we suffered a couple of goals, we wouldn't bounce back," stated the coach. "Now is a different sensation. It's evident we could not triumph in this game but we are determined not to be defeated. And that is a mindset a big team occasionally has to have."

The manager didn't say it, but the arrival of the Brazilian forward and Bryan Mbeumo probably made a difference.

The attacker is not one to shy away from difficult situations, on the contrary indeed. In the first half, when he was booed by the local supporters for what they believed was his gamesmanship, he responded - rather than ignore it - pointing to the crest on his shorts.

The forward is a hustle-bustle menace, the epitome of a player who will not give an rival any rest.

The coach was questioned precisely what had led to the psychological growth. Beyond mentioning the confidence gained from the prior three successive wins, he didn't provide an answer.

"Our self-belief, naturally, is completely changed," he said. "Following three good games and we have a different confidence. We understand each other better. We communicate increased about this.

"We demonstrated this year we can have difficult periods but then, we have three strong performances.

"We just need to remain inside the match until the last moments. Previously, we could have lost everything based on how we performed in the encounter. Today, the impression was different."

Doubt Lingers Regarding Prospects of the striker and Mainoo

While this represented a occasion when the team displayed their resilience, it was additionally a moment that must have left Joshua Zirkzee and the young midfielder even more unsure of their roles in Amorim's new-look squad.

In his pre-match press conference, Amorim stated it was likely players who think they are at danger of not making the World Cup will request transfers in the January transfer window.

One can reasonably conclude Zirkzee and Mainoo fall into that bracket. Zirkzee has accumulated 82 minutes from his four top-flight substitute appearances in the current campaign. For Mainoo, the total is 138 from 7.

Neither has begun a Premier League game so far and nor were they asked to come off the bench at the stadium, as the team sought a way back into a contest they were losing from the second half.

"Our squad includes a great deal of quality on the bench but sometimes I have the impression if I'm going to disrupt the game constantly, I'm going to interrupt the rhythm," said Amorim. "Our performance was getting better during the second half, so my instinct was to avoid altering the setup with the players in attack."

Mainoo had a deal in progress to join Napoli in the final stages of the summer window but United would not approve a transfer. Zirkzee was returning from injury but is now considering the possibility of a move back to Serie A.

The circumstances is complicated by the absence of the winger and the wing-back to the continental tournament in the midst of the winter, a period which features a couple of midweek games which will demand a level of rotation not previously needed.

Since the final is on January 18th, the duo should be returned well before the signing period ends on February 2nd - which could result in a later outcome than any eager to leave individual would like.

"This is about the characteristics of the game," said Amorim, when questioned specifically about the forward and Mainoo. "The players understand it's temporary.

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