Man United shock: Amorim sacked after boardroom clash | OneFootball

Shocking news in Manchester: Ruben Amorim is no longer the manager of Manchester United. The decision came the day after the draw against Leeds and is the direct consequence of an irreparable rift between the Portuguese coach and the club.

Manchester United, turmoil at Old Trafford: Amorim sacked after clash with management

More than the results, it was the coach’s public statements that weighed heavily, perceived as a real attack on the club.

The official statement and interim management

In a note released at 11:08 AM Italian time, United announced the sacking, explaining that, “with the team in sixth place in the standings, the club has reluctantly made the decision to make a change, believing that this is the best moment to give the group the chance to finish the season in the best possible position.”

In the 21st round of the Premier League, scheduled for Wednesday at Burnley, the team will be entrusted to assistant Darren Fletcher. The choice of a new manager could be postponed until the summer, a sign of an ongoing fluid situation at the top levels of Old Trafford.

The statement that sparked the controversy

Behind the cautious language of the statement, however, lies a deep fracture, which erupted publicly after Leeds-United. In the post-match, Amorim declared: “I am here to be the manager of Manchester United, not just the coach. I want this to be clear and to remain so for the next 18 months or until the management decides to change.”

Extremely harsh words, interpreted as a direct challenge to the club’s governance. According to sources close to United, CEO Omar Berrada and sporting director Jason Wilcox had already decided on the dismissal last night, taking only a few hours of reflection before the official announcement. With those words, the end of the relationship became inevitable.

A project that never really took off

Arriving in November 2024 from Sporting Lisbon for 11 million euros, Amorim was supposed to represent the technical and cultural turning point after Ferguson. In Portugal, he had established himself as one of the best young coaches in Europe, thanks to a clear tactical identity and modern football. In Manchester, however, the project never really took off.

The Portuguese coach had to give up, not without discontent, his classic 3-4-2-1, openly explaining that “to buy the right players for that system would require a lot of money.” A message he reiterated several times, even on the eve of the match with Leeds, when he admitted that the club could not afford to meet his requests in the transfer market.

Disappointing results and internal tensions

The numbers did not help Amorim. The 2024-25 season has gone down as the worst ever for United in the Premier League, the most negative since the relegation of 1973-74. Despite a slight recent improvement, favored by the absence of European competitions and the 230 million invested to rebuild the attack, the relationship with management progressively deteriorated.

Behind the scenes, the coach reportedly did not appreciate some transfer decisions, such as the preference given to young goalkeeper Senn Lammens over Emi Martinez, whom the coach had explicitly requested. The distance grew even further before Christmas, when the club imposed a change of formation, accepted by Amorim with evident reluctance.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.