Ruben Amorim’s spell at Manchester United came to an abrupt end, after a managerial spell that flattered to deceive.
One of the common themes at Manchester United over the past decade is that managers have not landed the players they wanted to sign.
Louis van Gaal, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Jose Mourinho all voiced complaints at not signing their top targets.
Ruben Amorim was heavily backed in the market and Ineos’ spending record has been much better than the previous Ed Woodward-led regime.
But did Amorim get the players he wanted? According to one report, there were four that he wanted to sign and failed to do so.
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Ruben Amorim wanted four Sporting players
Ruben Amorim was fired as manager after a fallout with the board, that also related to his transfer frustrations.
Ineos were no longer prepared to spend any more money on players to suit his system, when they believed that Amorim’s tactics needed to change.
According to The Mail, Amorim wanted to sign four players from his former club Sporting.
- Geovany Quenda
- Ousmane Diomande
- Morten Hjulmand
- Salvador Blopa
United were out-manoeuvered in the transfer market by Chelsea for Geovany Quenda, who signed him and loaned him back to Sporting.
But ultimately with Amad playing at right wing-back, Quenda was a player United simply did not need.
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The unofficial agreement with Sporting
Ruben Amorim was hired at Manchester United in November 2024, and there was an unofficial agreement with Sporting not to target any of their players in January 2025.
This came after Erik ten Hag made a point of targeting his former Ajax players after switching clubs in summer 2022.
In the summer 2025 transfer window, United showed no interest in moving for any of Amorim’s former players.
Diomande is a first team centre-back while Blopa was another emerging wing-back.
The Mail reported that midfielder Morten Hjulmand was most of interest to the head coach, and this was a position United failed to strengthen.
“Hjulmand was a player Amorim saw as filling a much-needed hole in the midfield and someone he did not need to explain his tactical ideas to.”
Amorim may well have misgivings about being unable to sign the Denmark international, but ultimately his failings at United were down to more than simply not having one player.
Ruben Amorim’s BIGGEST MISTAKE at Manchester United was ________________
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