Senior figures at Manchester United stressed that Ruben Amorim’s first encounter with assembled media was simply a pre-match press conference, rather than a grand unveiling.
But any noble intention to keep things lowkey went awry: there was a very palpable sense of anticipation over the new head coach.
Nine Portuguese journalists travelled to the United’s Carrington training ground to question Amorim. Journalists were asked to limit their queries to one question each, and the session was split in two: the first questions were in English before switching to Portuguese.
There were so many questions about how United’s new head coach compared to his predecessors that everyone forgot to ask about the injury status of Luke Shaw, Leny Yoro and others. No one asked about Sunday’s opponents Ipswich Town.
It was the Amorim show, and the 39-year-old (we keep bringing up his age for a reason that we’ll get to later), came across as a confident, composed and charismatic figure.
Here’s a look at Amorim’s most important quotes ahead of Sunday’s game, and The Athletic’s best attempt to read between the lines.
Belief will be a key theme
Amorim was asked what gives him the faith that he’s the man to win United’s next Premier League title.
“I am a little bit of a dreamer and I believe in myself. I also believe in the club as I think we have the same idea, the same mindset, so that can help.
“But I truly believe in the players also. I know that you guys don’t believe a lot in these players, but I believe a lot and I think we have room to improve. I want to try new things — and you guys think it is not possible, I think it is possible and we will see in the end.”
“Belief” was one of Amorim’s most-used terms in Friday’s press conference. He spoke with conviction and a clear purpose about his belief that the methods that brought him success in Portugal with Braga and Sporting CP will also bring about something special in England.
“As a coach, you have to choose one way or another,” he said when asked if he would choose a playing philosophy that could suit the players within the United squad.
“I always chose 100 per cent our way. I prefer to risk a little bit but to push from the first moment. If they feel since the first day that I believe so much in our way of playing, they will believe too. So there is no second doubts, no second way.”
On Sunday, his side will be playing a variation of the 3-4-3 that Amorim has used for the majority of his coaching career. But the new head coach also said: “Football is not so different than with five players in the back, three players in the back, four players in the back.” Change is afoot at United, but fans will be heartened to hear that Amorim believes the task ahead of him will be challenging rather than impossible.
“It is a belief, like the word, you have to believe. I believe in them because when I start this week, you can say that it is one week, just three trainings, they change their style and everyone is excited. But they are open to different things and the only thing I ask is hard work and that you have to believe in a new idea. I felt that and until they prove me wrong, I believe in the players.”
Don’t compare him to Mourinho
“You look at Mourinho and you felt he can win everywhere — it is not the same thing (with me), he was a European champion. I am not a European champion. But I am a different guy in a different moment. Football nowadays is different and I think I am the right person for this moment because I am a young guy and I understand the players, so I try to use that to help my players, like Mourinho in that era, and what he did at Chelsea.
“If you remember the young guys were like (Frank) Lampard and these kind of players. Nowadays, it is so much more different. So I think I am the right guy for this moment.”
It was interesting that he brought up his comparative youth. Amorim sees his age as a strength in the dressing room; he thinks he can better relate to players, rather than talk down to them.
A special note must also be made of Amorim’s mention of Frank Lampard. In 2017, Mourinho gave an interview to France Football where he explained the 23-year-olds he first encountered at Chelsea in 2004 were very different to the 23-year-old of the modern era.
“I had to understand the difference between working with a boy like Frank Lampard who, at the age of 23, was already a man — who thought football, work, professionalism — and the new boys today, who at the age of 23 are kids,” said Mourinho, who was United manager at the time.
“Today, I call them ‘boys’ and not ‘men’. Because I think that they are brats and that everything that surrounds them does not help them in their life nor in my work.”
When Amorim says he’s different to Mourinho, it’s not just to say he’s his own man. He is trying to tell you that he’s good at communicating with the next generation of footballers emerging today.
He knows the team needs to improve
When asked about his first impressions of the squad and whether it was in need of repair, Amorim revealed optimism and realism.
“I do not know about repair. But like I said, we have space to grow as a team. I think we have to improve in a lot of areas and in the understanding of the game. I know it is a different way of playing and we are changing in the middle of the season. I think we have to improve the physical aspect of the team, it is something that we want to improve.”
Asked about quick wins, he said: “I think we lose the ball too often and we have to keep the ball better”.
United’s poor ball retention and weak rest defence have been a persistent issue in 2024. (Arne Slot outlined it very well.) Ruud van Nistelrooy slowed down the club’s negative spiral, bringing Manuel Ugarte into the starting lineup and addressing the large gaps in central midfield. However, there is still a way to go before United can be considered one of the favourites for Champions League qualification, let alone putting together an eventual title challenge by Omar Berrada’s proposed 2028 date.
The Athletic is going to cheat a little, and bring up another Amorim interview. Conducted with Gary Neville and Sky Sports this week, he explained how the team’s need for physicality off the ball is related to their behaviours with it.
“The first point to press high is you have to be very fit and you have to cope with the demands of pressing,” he told Gary Neville. “I’m just telling my way of seeing things is that the problem is with the ball: we win the ball, (and then) we lose the ball too fast.”
“The focus this week was on that part: if you don’t lose the ball, you can push higher. If you are higher you can press better. It’s like a snowball (effect), everything is connected.”
In the coming months, United fans could see fewer ambitious long balls from Bruno Fernandes or Casemiro. There could also be a reduction in the long dribbling attempts from Marcus Rashford and others as they try to force the ball past two or three defenders.
“We have to be better when we run back. I think it is clear for everybody and we have to be very good at the details. Sometimes, we are hoping to change a lot of things, big things, and I think it is the small things and we have to change in those small things in the football.”
More than one of Amorim’s predecessors tried to turn United into a high-pressing collective unit — only to realise the squad lacked the physicality to run with the best teams in the league.
The Portuguese coach will have to find a way to get the squad to move past the inconsistent counter-attacks they have been defined by in the past.
Gyokeres is a Sporting player. Let’s not overdo things
Amorim was asked how he would best describe Sporting’s Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres.
“Viktor Gyokeres is a Sporting player, he’s got a game today and I hope he plays well, doesn’t get injured and is successful at Sporting.”
The transfer rumour mill has already started to link Gyokeres with a move to Old Trafford, but Amorim chose to downplay such things.
Given his earlier explanation that he will have “responsibility” rather than the final say in player recruitment, you get the sense Amorim will not be given a blank cheque for new players in the January window. He first wants to work with and refine the players available to him in the first team and academy as he adjusts to working within the INEOS structure. Big moves for goalscorers may have to wait.
He wants to play on the front foot
A line given in his native Portuguese came after he was asked about his playing philosophy.
“The people here like intense attacking football. There are a lot of physically strong players that are also talented. Therefore, that’s what we are going to look for — to link the coach’s idea with that of the club.
“A dominant club that looks to win all their games and be protagonists. We also add the league to the equation: it’s quick, intense, physical with goals and therefore that’s what we will try to do.”
The Amorim era at Manchester United begins on Sunday.
(Top photo: Amorim at his first United press conference; by Ash Donelon/Manchester United via Getty Images)
