- Who is Ruben Amorim?
- The Manchester United Project
- Why is Ruben Amorim Struggling
- Manchester United Transfer debacle
- What Next for Ruben Amorim?
- What Next Manchester United
Intro: Who is Ruben Amorim?
Ruben Amorim is a professional football manager currently in charge of the English Premier League club, Manchester United. Born on 27th January 1985 in Lisbon, Portugal.
The young coach is reposed with the responsibility of restoring the glory days back to Manchester United; a task he seems to be finding very difficult to accomplish.
Before his appointment as the manager at Old Trafford, Ruben had a very impressive albeit short run of form with Sporting Lisbon, his former club.
His excellent record with Sporting Lisbon this season saw him emerge as the favourite to replace the outgoing Erik Ten Hag who seemed to have exhausted his ability and luck as the coach of Manchester United
The Portuguese coach was drafted to kickstart a new era at Man. Utd. after Ten Hag was shown the exit door but two months after, results are yet to improve at the theatre of dreams.
Ruben Amorim’s reign has been a far cry from what fans expected of him. He lost far more games than he won in his first sixteen games as Man. Utd. coach.
“In Search of their own Pep Guardiola, Manchester United landed an Andre Villas-Boas in Ruben Amorim”
Amorim’s reign at Old Trafford so far shares a striking similarity with his compatriot’s reign at Chelsea in 2011-12. Andre Villas-Boas was once touted to be the next big manager in Europe after leading Porto to Europa glory in 2010-11.
But his reign in England took a rather downward turn in the revelation of the obvious fact that the English Premier League is far superior to the Portuguese League.
The Manchester United Project
The project to restore Man. Utd. back to the glorious days it enjoyed under the leadership of Sir Alex Ferguson is underway but it appears more works have to be done.
Since Sir Alex Ferguson retired as the coach of the club in 2013, no fewer than seven coaches have been employed to manage the club both on a temporary and permanent basis.
The Manchester United project currently looks like a pipe dream and the man in charge of realizing this dream is ticking all the negative boxes.
Amorim is proven to be the wrong man for the job. In his first sixteen matches as a United boss, Amorim recorded 4 wins, 8 losses, and 2 draws.
The results are nothing to write home about and they inspire little or no hope to fans who have long awaited the restoration of the good old days at Old Trafford.
Fans would be hoping the Portuguese coach would turn things around sooner and stir the club in the right direction.
Also read: Arsenal F.C. needs a World class Striker to Win the League
Why is Ruben Amorim Struggling
Amorim’s struggles at United may be attributed to a handful of factors. Firstly, The Portuguese manager joined the club during the course of the season and did not enjoy the luxury of preseason preparations.
Perhaps if he had been employed before the season began, he would have had enough time to prepare with the team and the players would adapt better to his style of play.
Injury to key players is another reason why the Manchester United boss has found it difficult to adjust to life at Old Trafford. Some important players have suffered several arrays of injuries during the season.
Amad and Lisandro Martinez have been amazing for the club this season and the coach considers them very important to the Manchester United project.
But sadly, the two are currently sidelined to injuries and they are expected to be away from action for a very long time.
Also, Ruben Amorim must bear some responsibility for his poor outings so far in the premier league. The Portuguese has been too rigid with his style of play and refuses to adjust to his new environment.
Amorim is known to prefer a 3-4-3 formation. A tactic that helped him flourish at Sporting Lisbon but the formation has proven to be ineffective in EPL.
Playing with three defenders in a league like EPL would always be counterproductive due to the constant attacking pressure defenders are subjected to in the league.
The team has suffered a lot of loss as a result of this formation but Amorim is defiant about finding a new formation suitable for the league.
To turn things around and succeed in England, Amorim is left with no other option than to reinvent himself.
Manchester United Transfer debacle
In defence of the struggling Portuguese coach, Man. Utd. have performed horribly in the transfer market in the last few years. And most of their struggles can be attributed to their poor dealings in the transfer market.
The club have bought players who lack the required skills to excel in the premiership. The EPL is arguably the most competitive league in the world and players must be physically fit to excel in the league.
Some players who have found it difficult to adapt to the physical demands of the league include Tyrell Malacia, Anthony Dos Santos, Joshua Zirkzee, and Rasmus Hojlund.
Also, other players like Sancho failed to adapt to the style of the former coach. The club spent a huge amount to sign these players who have proven to be a bad business.
It is obvious the feasibility study carried out by the club’s executives before signing these players was poorly done, meaning Manchester United might need to change its sporting director.
Like the former coach, Ruben Amorim is currently carrying the burden of the poor transfer policy of some of the club’s executives.
What Next for Ruben Amorim?
The Portuguese coach is currently sitting in the balance and his job at United is no longer guaranteed after a series of poor results.
Some sections of the club’s fans who yearn for the return of the glorious days at Old Trafford have reportedly lost faith in the coach.
Also, the club’s executives are beginning to lose patience with the Portuguese. Unless he does something extraordinary and start delivering good results, Ruben Amorim might be relieved of his job sooner than expected.
What Next Manchester United
There are speculations that Zinedine Zidane and Mauricio Pochetino are the top contenders to replace Amorim at United should he fail to overturn his poor run of form.
The club has approached Zidane in the past but the French icon turned down the opportunity citing some conditions in the club as reason.
He has been out job for a few years since quitting his role at Madrid. However, it is unlikely Zidane would accept the challenge of managing Manchester United given the club’s current condition.
