On a day when Manchester United dispatched Leicester City 3-0 in a no-fuss display that was reminiscent of how most games used to go under Sir Alex Ferguson, Ruben Amorim somehow one-upped it.
It had been too long since the Old Trafford crowd witnessed a home league win that didn’t have them sweating nervously with a collapsed lead, a missed chance, or a sending-off.
Ruud van Nistelrooy bought that in his final game in charge as Man Utd manager and with Sporting set to play just 45 minutes after, the stage was set for a fiery day.
Ruben Amorim managed his final game as Sporting manager and it was an emotional one, with the opponent being Braga, the club where he made his name before Sporting snapped him up.
In a tricky away game, Sporting emerged victorious to send Amorim off as an unbeaten man. How they did it, though, was the perfect “Man Utd DNA” type of a game.
Ruben Amorim’s Sporting shows Sir Alex Ferguson’s Man Utd trait
At half-time, Amorim’s farewell was turning sour. Braga were leading 2-0 and Sporting looked like they had already said goodbye to Amorim.
The narratives were already many. His former side was going to inflict the last wound on him, taking away his unbeaten record after a historically good start to the season.
However, some words were exchanged at half-time, Sporting came out with a point to prove and the what looked like a very good draw after Hjulmand’s 81st-minute goal turned into a 4-2 win.
Harder scored two goals late on to give Sporting the victory in a manner straight out of United’s numerous wins under Sir Alex.
After the game, the players celebrated their departing manager that proved the strong bond he has built with the players, again, reminiscent of Sir Alex Ferguson’s farewell.
Speaking after the game, Morten Hjulmand admitted that the Amorim factor was concentrating their minds. They were eager to end his tenure on a high which led to the dominating second-half display.
He said: “In the first half, it was not Sporting standard. At half-time, we spoke and we wanted to give Amorim a win for his last game so we are very happy.”
The Man Utd DNA and fear factor Ruben Amorim needs to instill
For more than a decade, managers following Sir Alex Ferguson have been sacrificed at the dias of playing “The United way”.
It consists of fast, attacking football, with young and exciting players getting fans up from their seats with a never-say-die attitude and a fierce winning mentality.
Some manage to get a few of those boxes ticked but never the whole package. Most importantly, the “Man Utd DNA” has been lost as teams no longer visit or welcome United with the feeling that they will get rolled.
A part of why that used to happen under Sir Alex is because of the comebacks, and Sporting paid the perfect tribute to that phenomenon in Amorim’s last game.
The man himself has already said that success and style and Sporting cannot be directly transferred to United but mentality comes from the manager and the dressing room.
If he can transmit that to this dressing room, then half the job will be taken care of for him.
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