Ruben Amorim admits some Manchester United players are taking criticism of their form "personally" and that the squad is living in a "bubble" amid more redundancies at the club. United are 15th in the Premier League and could record their worst finish in the top flight since they were relegated in 1974, having taken only 15 points from Amorim's 15 league games in charge. The club informed staff on Monday that up to 200 employees would be laid off as part of a second round of job cuts after United lost £300million in the past three years. United slashed their workforce by nearly a quarter last year when 250 employees were made redundant. Amorim expressed empathy for colleagues whose roles will be placed at risk but stressed the players are so overwhelmed by the pressure of performing for United that they are insulated from the low morale that is rife among club staff. Some current United players consoled staff who left in the summer. "I’m not saying it’s a bad thing but the players don’t feel it too much, they have one life, they live in a bubble," he said. "It’s completely different for them than it is for me, for Andrew (Ward, the press officer), for everybody in the club. They are not feeling that pressure. "They feel the pressure that they need to win at Manchester United and every time we lose and every time they don’t perform there are a lot of people on social media and in the newspaper they are putting on a lot of pressure. "Then they go to the pitch and try to fix things not in a good way - thinking too much, not playing the way they’re supposed to play. So they don’t feel that pressure of people losing their job. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing - they are young kids that live in a different world - but they suffer a different pressure. "And sometimes it’s harder. The other people are talking about them all the time, all their friends, social media, former players and they take it so personally and sometimes it’s really hard for them to turn things around. "I have empathy for everybody but it’s easy to feel empathy with all the situations that have occurred. And then the second feeling is that I need to improve my job. "You want to improve to help everybody - the board, Omar (Berrada) - through these transitional moments. I’m trying all the time to feel positive because I’m the manager and I know the staff are always looking at me. "I take a lot of energy for giving that hope for them to be positive and energetic and trying to do my job the best I can to help all the club." Despite their dire position in the league, United have an FA Cup fifth round tie at home to Fulham and Sunday and play Real Sociedad in the Europa League round of 16 next month. Winning either competition would secure qualification for European football next term and United have not gone two seasons without playing in the Champions League since they re-entered the European Cup in 1993. Amorim conceded United's poor playing performance had contributed to the announcement of more redundancies and he is determined to make the side a credible force again. "I think we need to show," he stressed. "It’s easy for me to be here and say all the pretty stuff. "We have to improve recruitment, I think that is crucial. And we need to improve the team. We need to perform better and we need to be in Europe and not in our position this season. "They are paying the price for our lack of success and I can’t say anything now that is going to convince the fans and all the staff that we’re going to do it. We have an idea but we need to be a better team and recruit better and not make a lot of mistakes in that department."