Throwback picture shows defender Ruben Amorim watching in horror as Jonny Evans scores AGAINST him for Man Utd
RUBEN AMORIM is closing in on becoming the next permanent boss of Manchester United.
Reports suggest the Red Devils are willing to pay the 39-year-old’s £8.3million release clause from Sporting CP to appoint him as their replacement for Erik ten Hag, who was sacked on Monday.
However, the ex-midfielder – dubbed the Special One 2.0 – actually shared the pitch with three players he will be coaching at Old Trafford.
The first of these is former Benfica team-mate Victor Lindelof, whom he shared the pitch with just three times as the Swede was coming through the ranks.
The second was ex-Tottenham star Christian Eriksen, who he faced with Benfica in the Europa League as he saw the Dane score in the second leg of the last-16 tie.
The third star is actually returned Man Utd hero Jonny Evans.
Amorim and Evans, now 36, lined up on opposite sides during a Champions League group stage clash between United and Braga at Old Trafford in 2012.
The Portuguese side had gotten off to a perfect start on the night, going 2-0 up inside 20 minutes through Alan, though Javier Hernandez halved the deficit five minutes later.
The hosts dominated proceedings, and Sir Alex Ferguson‘s side found an equaliser in the 62nd minute as Evans bundled a goal home from a corner.
And a picture from that night of Evans celebrating with Amorim with his hands behind his head in horror has resurfaced in light of the managerial links now associating United and the Portuguese manager.
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Hernandez struck the decisive winner in the 75th minute to seal a remarkable comeback win for United.
Amorim himself was subbed out of the game after 80 minutes.
Speaking about his links to the Man Utd job following Sporting’s 3-1 win over Nacional in the Portuguese League Cup on Tuesday, Amorim said: “Manchester United is interested. But it’s my choice. Until everything is decided, we won’t be making any noise.
“I have nothing useful to say. I will take on whatever I want to do, as I have always done. I’m not going to talk about my contract, it’s a matter between me and Sporting.”
In the meantime, Ruud van Nistelrooy will take interim charge of the United squad for their League Cup clash against Leicester tonight, while he may also be in charge for Sunday’s game against Chelsea.
'I was expecting this' - What Ruben Amorim said about Man Utd job links
RUBEN AMORIM has responded to being linked with a move to Manchester United.
The Sporting Lisbon coach, 39, is reportedly closing in on a deal worth £8million to become Erik ten Hag’s successor.
Just hours after Ten Hag’s dismissed on Monday morning, it emerged Man Utd chiefs were in talks with Amorim as they zero in on the Sporting boss.
But the ex-Braga coach remained tight-lipped on negotiations when quizzed by the media.
He said: “I was already expecting this question [about Man Utd].
“Obviously I’m not going to talk about the future, because otherwise I’ll always have to comment.
“I’m very proud to be Sporting coach, that’s all.”
He then went down the path of coaching, attending a course at the Faculty of Human Kinetics, University of Lisbon with lectures led by Jose Mourinho alongside seven-time Primeira Liga winner Antonio Veloso.
He later completed an internship under Mourinho while the Special One was at United, and Amorim has cited the three-time Premier League winner as an idol and a “reference point” in his coaching.
While he has played down the comparisons, calling Mourinho “unique”, Amorim’s demeanour has been compared to his old master.
Assuming all goes to plan and he does move to United, Amorim is reportedly likely to stick to his 3-4-3 system.
He has won the Portuguese league twice with Sporting since taking charge in 2020, ending a 19-year duopoly of Benfica and Porto dominance.
When previously managing Braga, he had also led to the club’s first win over Porto for 65 years.
Ruben Amorim is ‘Mourinho 2.0’ who turned Sporting from ‘walking dead’ into Portuguese champs… he can revive Man Utd
WHEN Ruben Amorim took charge of Sporting Lisbon in March 2020, one club official compared their situation to the “walking dead”, writes Jordan Davies.
Optimism and hope was at an all-time low.
But the Amorim-effect was almost instantaneous, guiding the Portuguese sleeping giants to their first league title for 19 years in 2020/21, losing just once and only conceding 20 goals.
Since then, Sporting have lifted another league title in 2023/24 – as well as two League Cups – and currently sit top with nine wins from nine this term.
He may be young, but Amorim already has an eye for rebuilding and revitalising fallen super powers with his infectious charisma and intense tactical philosophy that hardly ever wavers.
The “walking dead” at Manchester United must be praying for a similar sort of revival.
And they may just get it from one of the most talented young coaches on the continent – a man accustomed to breathing new life back into crumbling institutions such as Old Trafford.
Amorim has spent the last decade dreaming of one day gracing England’s Premier League, such was his admiration for an ex-United boss in Jose Mourinho growing up.
Often nicknamed ‘Mourinho 2.0’, Amorim spent a week with his coaching idol in an internship capacity at United’s Carrington training base in 2018, going on to cite him as his “reference point”.
United should not be expecting a mini-Mourinho, as Amorim said himself: “Mourinho is one of a kind. There won’t be another Mourinho. Mourinho is unique.”
And yet, you cannot help but compare the two.
For all the mismanagement in the Old Trafford hot seats over the years, this would be a real get – finally a slap in the face United’s Prem rivals have no answer for.