New Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim is the latest to try and recapture the success Sir Alex Ferguson enjoyed during his legendary stint in the Old Trafford dugout
New Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim is the latest to try and recapture the success Sir Alex Ferguson enjoyed during his legendary stint in the Old Trafford dugout New Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim is the latest to try and recapture the success Sir Alex Ferguson enjoyed during his legendary stint in the Old Trafford dugout
Ruben Amorim will not be turning to Sir Alex Ferguson for advice as he looks to find a way to guide Manchester United out of the shadow of Pep Guardiola ’s Manchester City.
Amorim is yet to meet the most successful manager in the history of the club – and the 39-year-old has made it clear that he won’t be reopening the door to the dressing room that was closed on Ferguson last month when he was told to keep his distance from United’s players.
The Portuguese insists he must be his own man when it comes to the task of bringing back the kind of glory days that United last enjoyed under the Scot before he retired 11 years ago. Amorim accepts that Guardiola’s decision to sign a contract extension that will keep him at the Etihad until the summer of 2027 makes his job much harder than it might have been.
But while Ferguson once leaned on the guidance of Sir Matt Busby before making his own history at Old Trafford, the new man made it clear that he wants the past to stay exactly where it is.
Asked if he had met the 13-time Premier League winner, Amorim revealed: “No, not yet. I didn’t have that opportunity. It’s hard to copy someone, so I have to be me.
“This is a club that needs and has to win, so we have to show that to our players. But it’s a different time. I cannot be the same guy that Sir Alex Ferguson was.
“It’s a different time and I have to have a different approach – but I can also be demanding with a different approach and that is my focus.”
United haven’t been Premier League champions since Ferguson retired in 2013.
They are also yet to finish above their nearest rivals over the same period – and when Amorim looked at the current table on his first day on the job he would have seen the Blues eight points better off despite being enveloped in the worst crisis of Guardiola’s eight-year reign.
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The Portuguese added to City’s woes by whipping them 4-1 in the Champions League earlier this month in one of his final acts as coach of Sporting Lisbon. Amorim said: “I think it (Guardiola signing a new contract) is a problem for everyone here.
“But we have so much to do ourselves that we can’t focus on anyone else. We just have to focus on our club, improving our club and not focusing on the other clubs – so let’s focus on Manchester United.
“It’s amazing, if you can beat that team (City) then it’s a good sign but, like I said, let’s focus on Manchester United.”
Amorim’s first game as United manager takes him to Ipswich Town and a battle of wits with Kieran McKenna, the young Irishman who was courted by United in the summer.
He is ready to launch himself onto a steep learning curve – but he is aware that results will be of the essence if he wants to buy himself the time that will enable him to live up to the legacy Ferguson created over more than 26 years.
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Amorim added: “It’s so much harder to come to a team in the middle of a season because you have to know the players during the games. You’re talking about no national-team periods to work with the players, so it’s just about games.
“If you are winning, it’s a lot of fun having a lot of games and trying to make some changes tactically. But if you’re losing, you don’t have the time in training to work out everything you want to work.
“I think where we can improve a team is in training. This is the most important aspect, but it is really hard to do it using video or in recovery training. We will find ways to try to cope.”
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