Ruben Amorim’s latest comments mean a familiar script is playing out at Manchester United, only the result will be different this time.
Having been backed to the tune of nearly £300m since his arrival, Ruben Amorim is yet to convince the supporters that this team is genuinely going somewhere.
Injuries and absences have taken a toll, but it’s impossible to shake off the feeling that Man Utd are missing a golden opportunity to take advantage of an open league in a season without Europe.
Are you confident Ruben Amorim is the right head coach for Man Utd?
Amorim has now added to that simmering discontent with some cryptic comments that restart a familiar feud at Old Trafford, but with different dynamics.
Ruben Amorim starts a familiar feud at Man Utd
As Ineos’ first managerial appointment, the appetite from the owners to see Amorim succeed at Old Trafford is an open secret.
No other Man Utd manager has been given the same time and backing that Amorim has had, despite getting far better results, which were deemed sack-worthy at the time.
However, by the end of their tenures, a common theme emerged of how the board failed them, either on or off the pitch.
Be it Jose Mourinho wanting to sell Anthony Martial but not allowed to, or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s transfer recommendations falling on deaf ears, the “board vs manager” feud is a common one at United.
Every manager was failed in some capacity by the Glazers, and even Erik ten Hag can argue that he wasn’t given a long rope since Ineos tolerated him instead of backing him because he wasn’t “their man”.
After Amorim’s recent cryptic comments about how he doesn’t want to talk about the January window, and backing down from his 3-4-3 system, a familiar script is repeating.
Without saying much, Amorim has effectively admitted that the board are starting to pull tjeir hand back a bit, wanting to see some progress before backing him further.
Usually an extremely open man in press conferences, Amorim straight up said players need to talk to Jason Wilcox if they wish to leave, and said a journalist was “very smart” when he theorised that the recent tactical changes have come after talks with Wilcox.
These are the remarks of a manager who is feeling pressured from above after being backed unilaterally for a year, and therein lies the differentiating factor.
Ineos’ backing means Amorim’s result will be different
When the above happens, it usually ends with the manager leaving and the fanbase lamenting another unfulfilled project due to the board’s incompetence.
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That is true in most cases under the Glazers, but if there was ever a manager who couldn’t complain about a lack of backing, it’s Amorim.
He has effectively been given a free hand to reshape the squad, as multiple wingers were sold and specialist wing-backs were brought for his system.
Despite not being in Europe, United spent nearly £250m to shape the squad according to players he wants, and even when he was overruled, it was for a player like Senne Lammens, who has saved his season so far.
After all that work, simply saying “at least we’re not 15th” is simply not good enough, since the squad last year wasn’t bad enough to be 15th in the first place.
Unlike his predecessors, Amorim has been backed to the hilt, and is now hinting at discord behind the scenes, at the first moment the board are hesitant to commit more before seeing results.
The purpose of a sporting model beyond the manager was precisely to avoid letting a manager run amok, which is what Ineos are doing now.
He received immense backing, and now he has been asked to deliver some results to warrant more of it. Saying he has been failed by the board simply isn’t right this time.
He can restart this familiar feud at United, but the result will be different this time.
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