Ruben Amorim sack chance at Man United – ‘Amorim’s gone’
Manchester United have been tipped to sack Ruben Amorim as early as this summer after a terrible debut season at Old Trafford.
Amorim was criticised for his tactics in Man United’s 4-1 defeat to Newcastle at St James’ Park, where Altay Bayındır made his first Premier League start.
The keeper replaced Andre Onana after another two calamitous errors during the club’s 2-2 draw with Lyon, but the Turkey international followed suit by gifting the hosts their fourth goal.
While talkSPORT pundit Jason Cundy believes that Amorim will not be sacked as the Europa League is the only thing which matters for Man United this season and it is far too early for a removal to be on the table, Jamie O’Hara believes it is very possible and could cause long-term set backs thanks to the Portuguese’s 3-4-3 formation preference.
Man United ‘stuck’ with Ruben Amorim’s philosophy
Speaking live on talkSPORT on Monday (14 April), O’Hara made the point that Amorim is stuck in his preferred formation and that Man United’s 14 defeats are “unacceptable”, to which Cundy replied: “You’ve got a manager that wants to play the way he wants to play. You’ve got a squad that’s been built for a very, very different system, the way that’s been structured the last 15 windows.”
O’Hara pointed out that the results have to improve and that without the points from Erik ten Hag and Ruud van Nistelrooy that Man United “would go down”.
Cundy claimed that very little matters currently except the Europa League and plan for next season won’t change at this stage, adding: “[Amorim] is still going to be there, they’re not going to sack him”, which O’Hara challenged, saying “Why not? He’s out of his depth”.
O’Hara responded to a caller and directed blame at Sir Jim Ratcliffe for bringing Amorim in, suggesting that if the Portuguese stays this summer and is given a “war chest” of £200million to £300m in the summer, yet goes on to lose the opening games of next term “Amorim’s gone”, before claiming that the mess would be even worse as the squad would have been restocked for a 3-4-3 style which most replacements won’t play.
Ruben Amorim needs time and players to suit system
Football Insider Verdict
The biggest question for Man United is whether to stick with Amorim by giving him the tools to bring in players that can play in his system or start over with another manager.
So far, evidence suggests that the current personnel are unable to execute Amorim’s tactics of playing out from the back, with multiple players finding themselves in unfamiliar positions.
| Amorim’s record as United manager |
| Games – 32 |
| Won – 13 |
| Win percentage – 40.6% |
It would require significant further investment to revamp a squad which has been built for years around a different formation, in favour of a manager which only has a 40% win rate as manager so far.
Man United could lose up to eight first-team players in the summer transfer window, however it would seem implausible to replicate the number of outgoings with new arrivals if that is the case.
The situation poses a real risk to the long-term future of the club and one which perhaps should be considered if the results do not improve between now and the end of the season.