A lot has changed behind the scenes at Manchester United during Ruben Amorim’s first four months as head coach.
When Ruben Amorim arrived at Carrington for the first time, he was greeted at the doors by Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth.
During Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s first year as co-owner of the club, he made sweeping changes to the club’s hierarchy with Omar Berrada appointed as CEO before several new directors arrived.
United fans were delighted by Ashworth’s arrival, with supporters finally believing there was an elite director in charge of the footballing department.
But Ashworth left United in December, spending less time at Old Trafford than the club spent poaching him from Newcastle United. United paid over £4m hiring and firing Ashworth.
Dan Ashworth exit causes Ruben Amorim concerns
United are still yet to replace Ashworth with Jason Wilcox stepping up to take some of his responsibilities as sporting director.
The role is designed to provide a bridge between the coaching staff and the board, and that is something that is now concerning United legend Paul Scholes.
Speaking on The Overlap, Scholes is worried that a “disconnect” could grow between Ruben Amorim and Ineos.
“It worries me that, when you lose every week, there is going to be that disconnect [between manager and board],” Scholes said.
“I’m sure they must be growing further apart. I’m sure Ratcliffe is stepping back and wondering ‘have I done the right thing here?’
“I feel sorry for the manager a little bit because he came in when Dan Ashworth was going to be the one next to him. With Ten Hag I felt there was a big gap from him, his staff and the footballing side to the ownership.
“I don’t want that to happen again but I feel like it is happening without that man in the middle. I’m hoping he’s getting a bit of help, whether it’s Ratcliffe or Sir Dave Brailsford – whoever it is – is with him everyday.
“It feels like it’s coming apart again.”
Ineos support for Ruben Amorim
When Ten Hag was sacked in October, it did not take long for Ineos to identify Amorim as their first-choice replacement.
Ironically, Ashworth pushed for Amorim to be appointed, and that is now a decision that Ineos must stand by.
Ineos demanded Amorim joined this season, despite him initially wanting to join United in the summer where he would have a full pre-season and a transfer window to make an impact.
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The results in his first four months have been underwhelming, but that has to be expected when Amorim is given a depleted squad low on confidence with no financial backing in the transfer window.
Ineos did support Amorim over Marcus Rashford after the United boss decided to drop him completely from the first-team squad. With the team in a slump at the moment, this is when Amorim will need support more than ever from those above him.
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