Manchester City director spotted with former Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim | OneFootball

Former Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has been spotted spending some one-on-one time with Manchester City sporting director Hugo Viana.

The relationship between Amorim and Viana is widely viewed as one of the most successful partnerships in modern Portuguese football, built on a foundation of personal trust and a shared tactical vision.

The pair were former teammates at Braga before Viana – as Sporting CP’s Director of Football – took a gamble by paying a €10 million release clause to hire Amorim in 2020 in a link-up that would revitalise the club through two league titles.

The pair would go their separate ways in 2024 as Hugo Viana exited Sporting ahead of taking up the director of football role at Manchester City, while Ruben Amorim was appointed as Manchester United’s new manager.

The latter’s tenure at Old Trafford failed to replicate his Lisbon success and ended in his dismissal in January, 2026. Despite reaching the 2025 Europa League Final – where United lost to Tottenham – his insistence on a strict formation often left the squad looking exposed, leaving the club with a win percentage of just 38.1 per cent.

Hugo Viana and Ruben Amorim spotted in Lisbon together

Now, Manchester City’s sporting director Hugo Viana has been spotted spending some of his international break with close friend, former colleague at Sporting, and the recently-sacked Manchester United manager.

The pair have been in Lisbon this week playing Padel at a sports club just outside of the Portuguese capital’s city centre, posing for a photo which was published on the ‘Padel Expo’ Instagram page.

The duo’s link-up in Portugal this week will no doubt spark rumours as to whether Hugo Viana’s personal connection with Ruben Amorim could be enough to overlook the latter’s struggles at Old Trafford amid uncertainty over Pep Guardiola’s Etihad Stadium future.

Is Ruben Amorim on Man City’s list of potential next managers?

Speculation regarding a managerial search at Manchester City has intensified as Guardiola enters the final 15 months of a contract set to expire in June 2027. Reports have already suggested Viana is formalising a list of possible successors, should the Catalan opt to bring an end to his City stay this summer.

That early list is believed to include admiration for Enzo Maresca, who is currently out of work after leaving Chelsea in January, and Xabi Alonso – who is similarly unattached following a brief stint at Real Madrid.

Internal options within the City Football Group like Girona’s Míchel have also declared themselves “ready” for a step up, while former captain and now Bayern Munich boss Vincent Kompany remains a persistent narrative among supporters.