Ruben Amorim has said he is aware his job will be at risk if he fails to reverse Manchester United’s alarming slide and acknowledged supporters are “tired” of the team’s shortcomings. Amorim said he recognises the volatile state of management and is determined to thrive on the pressure.
The coach said he is not immune from danger because United paid €10m (£8.3m) to release him from his contract at Sporting in November and knows he must win to prevent scrutiny from building. Amorim’s successor at Sporting, João Pereira, was sacked this week after eight matches in charge.
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United have lost five of their past seven matches in all competitions, including four of their past five in the Premier League. Defeat at Wolves on Boxing Day dropped them to 14th, eight points above the relegation zone and 11 off fourth-placed Arsenal, leading Amorim to dismiss United’s chances of qualifying for European football.
“The manager of Manchester United can never, no matter what, be comfortable, and I know the business that I’m in,” Amorim said. “I know that if we don’t win, regardless of if they paid the buyout [for me] or not, I know that every manager is in danger and I like that. I like that because that is the job. You can argue that I have been here one month and I’ve had four training [sessions], but we are not winning. That is the reality and I’m quite comfortable with that.”
United have conceded directly from corners in successive matches, a Carabao Cup quarter-final defeat at Tottenham and at Molineux. While Amorim felt his goalkeeper André Onana was impeded on both occasions he stressed his players “must not cry about it” and instead suggested United should be inspired by their opponents. “We have to focus on doing the same thing to the opponent — that is my goal,” he said. “We just have to copy.”
Asked about the challenge of hosting Newcastle on Monday after the 3-0 loss at home to Bournemouth in their previous match at Old Trafford, Amorim added: “We have to fight against everything because our supporters are always there, but they are tired of this moment. We have to expect that any play from Newcastle near our box is going to make the stadium nervous and our players have to cope with that. We want to be competitive and try to win the game.”
