United View: Reds sack Ruben Amorim

Well, here we go again, Manchester United have sacked Ruben Amorim, 14 months into his tenure.

Darren Fletcher will step in as caretaker, making him the eleventh man to take the hot seat since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure in 2013. So, how did it come to this?

The signs of an untenable situation revealed themselves in Ruben Amorim’s Leeds pre-match press conference on Friday, with Amorim repeatedly answering, “I don’t want to talk about that.” When pressed about adapting his style and whether the budget for the January transfer window had changed.

Then, following their 1-1 draw at Elland Road, he came out in a fiery manner, stating he came to be ‘manager’ of Manchester United, not the ‘head coach.’ Additionally, he claimed that he would not quit, and they would need to bring in someone else if they wanted him gone.

Furthermore, Amorim called out the United hierarchy, stating that, the sporting director and the scouting department all need to do their jobs. This was ultimately the final straw for those above him, including Jason Wilcox, Omar Berrada, and Christopher Vivell.

If you read into what the Portuguese manager/head coach said, it felt like an ultimatum: either buy into his way of doing things and back him in the transfer market or get rid of him. Ultimately, they decided to go with the latter.

Although the club statement did not allude to any breakdown in the relationship, it is evident in the days after the 40-year-old’s dismissal that the harmony between board and manger were broken.

Reports have emerged about how Amorim clashed with Wilcox over his back three system and also with Vivell, who was instrumental in the additions of Benjamin Sesko and Sene Lammens. Amorim, by contrast, wanted Premier League experience in Ollie Watkins and Emi Martinez.

The tone in Amorim’s final press conference sees this come as no surprise. What is surprising is the club abandoning a project it had publicly committed to, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s quotes earlier in the season that Amorim would need three years to show he is a great coach – in reality, he wasn’t even able to finish one full season at Old Trafford.

The former Sporting manager was not afraid to rustle feathers, whether that be labelling his side the worst in Manchester United’s history last season, or creating the infamous ‘bomb squad.’ But, coming for the higher-ups was seen as a step too far, despite his side sitting sixth in the Premier League table.

He’s also been a divided figure amongst fans. For some, he has been vilified, branding him as oblivious to the club’s history of promoting youth, playing an alien style of football at United with his back three formation and pointing to his 38%-win rate – the lowest of any manager post-Fergie.

Others, however, believed he was trying to truly rebuild the team, implementing a clear system after inheriting a poor side lacking in attacking talent. Coming in mid-season, when he made it clear he didn’t want to and sacrificing league performance in hopes of securing Champions League qualification via success in the Europa League.

Results have improved this season with the introduction of several signings, but his tactical rigidity continued to divide opinion, and it became apparent that the money required to fulfil his vision would be astronomically high.

United’s issues shouldn’t lie solely with Amorim; the club hired him knowing his insistence on a back three, despite lacking the personnel to fully implement it. This came months after the misguided decision to persist with Erik ten Hag. Once again, it appears the INEOS hierarchy has failed to do its due diligence and led to another costly managerial mistake.

Darren Fletcher will now oversee United’s next two games against Burnley and Brighton in the FA Cup, as the club looks to bring in an interim manager until the end of the season, before a permanent choice is made in the Summer.

Whoever that may be, they will need to agree to work as part of the football structure, being a head coach and not a manager. Amorim was adamant that he was the manager. Those above him showed him who holds the true power at Old Trafford.