Charlie Grace

Mon 29 September 2025 10:30, UK

Manchester United’s poor start to the season continued after a dismal 3-1 away defeat at Brentford in the Premier League.

Goals from Igor Thiago and Mathias Jensen gave Brentford the win over Man United despite Benjamin Sesko scoring his first Premier League goal.

Amorim will rue the loss as Man United had a favourable run to find back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time since May 2024.

Man United are preparing to sack Amorim, according to reports, with the head coach having to improve results by the October international break.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe and INEOS attempt to cover their own back after Ruben Amorim debacle

When Amorim was hired by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS group in November 2024, it marked their first major hire since taking over sporting operations at Old Trafford.

Jason Wilcox and Omar Berrada were also key in the process, and almost a year on from his hiring, Amorim has United in the mire again.

The owners have invested almost £300 million in Amorim and his stubborn system despite the Portuguese’s plans yielding no positive results so far.

Amorim has shown no signs of adapting to cover the obvious frailties of his system, and as time goes on, questions begin to be asked about what INEOS are waiting for.

Projects admittedly take time and have turbulent periods, but they’re built on positive foundations with a view to the future; none of those qualities exist in Man United’s current timeline.

Amorim brought big ideas that worked when his Sporting side dominated in Portugal, but such a system was doomed to fail for an average team in a league full of superstars and well-coached teams.

With results and performances continuing to tank, and the signs of improvement sorely lacking, it becomes more and more apparent that INEOS are unwilling to sack Amorim due to the reflection it would have on Ratcliffe, Berrada and Wilcox.

Gary Neville highlights questions about the Man United ownership

In the long run, it would surely sting INEOS less to cut their losses and admit failure on their Amorim project, but the longer it goes on, the deeper the damage goes.

Gary Neville highlighted Man United’s ownership questions on his podcast, saying: “You’ve got to see how it goes against Sunderland, but if that game goes against Manchester United, you’re going to start seeing very big questions being asked about the Man United ownership.

“They’ve brought a new manager in, they’ve played a completely different system, they’ve invested in a completely different system, and if they’re then going to be 14th, 15th, 16th in October, it’s not a one-off, it becomes what you are.

“It becomes a pattern and managers come under huge pressure, we saw it with Graham Potter over the last few days, that’s not going to go away, and it will build over the next week, and I think a victory is needed more than ever against Sunderland.”

Amorim will hope he can beat Sunderland to quieten the noise around his job over the international break, but should he fail again, it may be INEOS that receive the loudest enquiries.