Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim will take over at Manchester United this month, but the Red Devils have been warned about the issues that could arise when he leaves in the future
Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim will take over at Manchester United this month, but the Red Devils have been warned about the issues that could arise when he leaves in the future Sporting CP manager Ruben Amorim will take over at Manchester United this month, but the Red Devils have been warned about the issues that could arise when he leaves in the future
Manchester United have been warned about the “instability” that Ruben Amorim‘s departure could bring in the future.
The Red Devils announced on Friday that Amorim, who has led Sporting CP to two Primeira Liga titles, will take over as head coach at Old Trafford on a deal until at least June 2027. He will officially start his new role on November 11, giving him a week to wrap up his duties with the Portuguese champions before his Premier League debut against Ipswich Town after the international break.
Amorim has two more games – a Champions League home clash ironically against Manchester City, and an away trip to Braga in the league – before bidding an emotional farewell. The two-time Primeira Liga-winning coach’s departure has certainly been tough for Sporting fans to swallow.
And while they have already announced reserve coach Joao Pereira as his successor, the club’s former sporting director Andre Geraldes believes Amorim’s exit has caused instability and question marks over the club’s direction. He stated that Sporting’s entire model was built around the manager, with Amorim being given “autonomy”, and a huge hole now taking form in his impending absence – something United may have to consider down the line too.
Geraldes said in an interview with O JOGO: “Sporting’s project was essentially centred on Ruben Amorim. Therefore, the departure of a coach with such autonomy represents a complex challenge for the club’s management. Although it was the board’s choice, it is clear that, having reached this point, such a decision would come with a cost.
“Amorim is loved not only internally, but also among fans and players. This impact, of course, is already generating instability. We are talking about someone who is a coach with a ‘house key’ to the club.
“The legacy that Ruben Amorim leaves, as I already had the opportunity to mention, is almost impossible to be equalled. The challenge is extremely complex and I see it as a process that will require time, more in the medium term than in the short term.
“It is natural that, at this stage, the players and the team still maintain much of Amorim’s game system, but, over time, it is also normal that the new coach’s ideas begin to consolidate. This is the challenge that Sporting will face with Amorim’s departure, in a model in which everything was based on the coach.”
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Geraldes’ comments do serve as a stark warning for Old Trafford chiefs and United fans alike, painting Amorim as a boss who requires full control over transfers and tactical decisions, although he has been specifically given the title of head coach in Manchester.
The risk, though, is that if things don’t pan out for the talented Portuguese and he is eventually sacked, United could be left with an even bigger mish-mash of players on their payroll for a system they no longer use. The Old Trafford faithful are all too familiar with wasting hundreds of millions of pounds and not seeing the benefits under the six managers who have followed Sir Alex Ferguson since 2013.
On the other hand, optimists might interpret Geraldes’ comments as a positive sign that Amorim will bring a distinct identity to the club – something which has been missing since Ferguson’s departure. Recently sacked boss Erik ten Hag wasn’t able to demonstrate any consistent philosophy during his two-and-a-half-year tenure despite having built a big reputation at Ajax with his style of play – and Amorim may be just the man to get the Old Trafford faithful on their feet once again.
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