Ruben Amorim delivered another press conference for the ages on Sunday afternoon.
After keeping his cool throughout the first five minutes of his debrief following the 1–1 draw with Leeds United at Elland Road, Amorim launched into a stunning rant about his status at Manchester United, repeatedly describing himself as “the manager” rather than “the coach” during a three-minute monologue which saw José Mourinho and Gary Neville get name-checked.
The battling draw his side had earned against Leeds was not the inspiration for Amorim’s ire. If anything he was satisfied with the middling display sparked into life by his own substitution, hailing it as an improvement upon recent showings.
Benjamin Šeško’s continued struggles in front of goal didn’t even elicit any backlash from the 40-year-old, who defended his summer recruit after watching him go an 11th straight game without finding the net.
No, instead it was a return to United’s transfer strategy which so enraged Amorim. The Portuguese tactician had managed to bite his tongue over this subject ahead of Sunday’s fixture, only hinting at a disagreement with director of football Jason Wilcox rather than explicitly saying anything when questioned about his statements over a lack of activity expected for this month. It appears as though he’d been storing up those grand declarations.
Amorim’s Factually Incorrect Assertions
The last question of Amorim’s press conference at Elland Road bluntly asked the United boss if he still had the board’s confidence. “Guys, stop with that,” he shot back. “I noticed that you receive selective information about everything. I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. And that is clear.”
Well, it hasn’t been that clear.
Amorim was specifically unveiled by Manchester United back on Nov. 1, 2024 as the club’s first ever “head coach of the men’s first team.” The term “manager”—which had been used for every past permanent appointment—was deliberately avoided.
Minority co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe had set about the painstaking process of trying to implement some coherent strategy in the United hierarchy, appointing Jason Wilcox as technical director and Dan Ashworth as a sporting director. This model, which most modern clubs now adhere to, was installed to avoid falling into the same trap of building a new squad for each manager who then left an eclectic mix of players for the next successor.
United managed to complicate matters by promptly sacking Ashworth and replacing him with Wilcox, but Amorim’s position in the hierarchy has remained unchanged. Heading into his third transfer window with the club, the head coach has come to question that position.
“I know that my name is not [Thomas] Tuchel, is not [Antonio] Conte, is not Mourinho, but I’m the manager of Manchester United,” he continued, bizarrely pointing to the managers of England, Napoli and Benfica respectively, with only the latter associated to the Red Devils as a former boss. “And it’s going to be like this for 18 months or when the board decide to change. So that was my point. I want to finish with that.”
As many of the befuddled journalists in attendance for this odd tirade asked, 18 months’ time (summer 2027) marks the end of Amorim’s current United contract. However, the former Sporting CP boss has no intention of leaving any sooner.
‘I’m Not Going to Quit’
Amorim has openly flirted the idea of stepping down from his post this very season. Yet, that stance appears to have been long forgotten. “I’m not going to quit,” he declared. “I will do my job until another guy is coming here to replace me.
“I just want to say that I’m going to be the manager of this team, not just the coach. And I was really clear on that. And that is going to finish in 18 months. And then everyone is going to move on. That was the deal. That is my job, not to be a coach.”
Gary Neville Catching Strays
Retired Manchester United defender and prominent pundit Gary Neville has expressed mixed feelings about Amorim throughout his tenure. The former England international recently questioned the manager’s tactics after a disappointing 1–1 draw with Wolves which was clearly still playing on his mind. “If people cannot handle the Gary Nevilles and the criticism of everything, we need to change the club,” he sighed.
When faced with more questioning, Amorim interrupted to say: “No, guys, I just want to say that I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach.
“And every department, the scouting department, the sports director needs to do their job. I will do mine for 18 months and then we move on.”
READ THE LATEST MAN UTD NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE
- Man Utd Player Ratings vs. Leeds: Amorim Intervention Spares His Blushes
- Leeds vs. Man Utd: Preview, Predictions and Lineups
- ‘Very Smart’—Ruben Amorim Leaves Door Open to Man Utd Rift Over Transfers
- Transfer Rumors: Liverpool Rival Man Utd for Baleba; Real Madrid Receive Fresh Rodrygo Bids
This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘I’m the Manager’—Ruben Amorim Unleashes Extraordinary Rant Over Man Utd Future.
