Manchester United have confirmed Sporting Lisbon’s Ruben Amorim as their new head coach.
The Portuguese will start officially on Monday, November 11 with Ruud van Nistelrooy, put in interim charge following Ten Hag’s departure on Monday, set to remain at the helm for upcoming games with Chelsea, PAOK and Leicester City.
Amorim has signed a contract to 2027 with the option of a further year with his first game set to be away at Ipswich Town on November 24.
The composition of Amorim’s backroom staff is yet be confirmed.
The Athletic reported on Thursday that the two clubs had agreed a deal for the 39-year-old to replace Erik ten Hag, who was sacked after two and a half years at the club.
The Portuguese financial regulator later confirmed that United have agreed to pay €11million (£9.25m; $11.95m) to release Amorim from his contract earlier than his 30-day notice after face-to-face negotiations in Lisbon led by chief executive Omar Berrada.
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Amorim has built a reputation as one of Europe’s most highly-rated young coaches with a track record as an astute tactician and of working well with young players.
He was appointed Sporting head coach in 2020 and won the Primeira Liga title — the club’s first league title in 19 years — in his first full season in charge in 2020-21.
Sporting won the league again last season and Amorim has also won the Taca da Liga, the Portuguese League Cup, on two occasions with Sporting and a third time with his previous club, Braga.
This season, Sporting are top of the table with a perfect record of nine wins from nine games, with 30 goals scored and just two against. They also sit eighth in the Champions League’s new-look league phase after two wins and a draw.
Amorim was a contender to replace Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool in the summer before Arne Slot ultimately got the job. He also held talks over replacing David Moyes at West Ham, before later apologising and calling the meeting “a mistake”.
Amorim was keen to ensure a satisfactory departure from Sporting and was conscious of the bond he had established with supporters over his four years in charge.
Speaking ahead of Sporting’s game with Estrela Amadora on Friday night, Amorim refused to divulge too many details of his imminent exit.
“It’s a negotiation between two clubs. It’s never easy. Even with the clauses, it’s never easy. They have to talk,” he told reporters.
“We will have clarification after the game. It will be very clear so it’s one more day after the game tomorrow we will have the decision made.”
Ten Hag’s departure came after Sunday’s loss to West Ham United, which left the Old Trafford club 14th in the Premier League.
He was appointed in April 2022 and went on to lead United to the Carabao Cup in his first season in charge as well as the FA Cup in May.
The former Ajax head coach was retained by the United hierarchy in the summer following an end-of-season review but only after they had sounded out a number of potential replacements.
Despite having his contract extended in June and the club spending approximately £205m, including add-ons, on new players, Ten Hag departed after winning just four of United’s 14 games this season.
Why has Amorim been so in demand?
Analysis by senior data analyst Mark Carey
Ruben Amorim is a manager that has been linked with his fair share of jobs in recent months, and you can understand why the 39-year-old is in demand.
Amorim guided Sporting to a first league title for 19 years in 2021-22, followed it up with another victory last season, and has nine wins from nine with Sporting sitting pretty at the top of the Primeira Liga this season.
Even accounting for the quality imbalance of the Primeira Liga, a side who boasted, statistically, one of the best attacks (Chance creation, 95 out 99) and the best defences (Chance prevention, 97 out of 99) shows that their manager must be having a positive effect.
Stylistically, Amorim’s 3-4-3 — or more specifically, a 3-4-2-1 — is built on high possession, flexible attacking approaches and a strong defensive foundation.
Last season’s arrival of striker Viktor Gyokeres led to a more transitional, direct style of attack (Patient attack, 49 out of 99). It also highlights Amorim’s ability to maximise his style by adapting to the skill sets of his players.
Amorim has shown his desire to bring young talent into the first team — including Goncalo Inacio, Matheus Nunes, Nuno Mendes and Ousmane Diomande — and has improved the team’s quality with the resources at his disposal.
Bruno Fernandes moved to Manchester United a little over a month before Amorim’s appointment, but Mendes (to Paris Saint-Germain), Nunes (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Pedro Porro (Tottenham Hotspur), Manuel Ugarte (also to PSG) and Joao Palhinha (Fulham) are among the talented players whom Amorim has improved before being sold for high fees.
Title-winning credentials? Tick. Fielding young players? Tick. Improving individual player performance? Tick. There are reasons why Amorim has been so highly sought-after among Europe’s elite.
(Top photo: Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images)
