Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim has pinpointed the “hardest part” about last season.
Amorim’s tough start to life at United
When Erik ten Hag was sacked as United boss and replaced by Amorim, there was optimism that the Portuguese coach would inspire an uptick in performances and results.
But, the opposite was mostly the case. In fact, it can be argued that things became much worse while Amorim was in charge of the team.
United struggled for form as Amorim went about implementing his preferred 3-4-2-1 formation. The Red Devils spent much of the season flirting with the relegation zone as they were regularly outplayed by their rivals.
Amorim and his players ended the campaign in a lowly 15th place – the club’s worst finish in 51 years. The team suffered 18 losses, nine of which came at home. United’s season ended in further heartbreak as they fell to a 1-0 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final.
Now, Amorim has opened up about the struggles of last term, admitting he often approached Premier League matches with a sense of dread, fully aware that United couldn’t match up to their opponents.
Amorim reflects on last season
The 40-year-old told The Telegraph, “To tell you the truth, it’s not how I returned to my house after the games [that was the problem], it’s how I left to go to the games.”
“Because I felt that sometimes we will struggle. All the struggles that we had in the games, I felt it before the games. So that was the hardest part – to go to the games and know that we are not going to be competitive, how we should be. That was the hardest part.”
“When I returned [home], I just looked to my family and tried to think about different things. But I was really frustrated. If you want to know the most difficult moment, it was that – before the games. Because I knew that we would struggle in specific games.”
Amorim revealed that at one stage during the campaign, he made the deliberate choice to prioritise the Europa League over the Premier League in a last-ditch effort to secure Champions League qualification – a decision that went against every fibre of his being.
“My goal in that moment, three months to the end, was trying to win the Europa League. We struggled a lot, trying to save players, to play 60 minutes. You play against Newcastle, all these clubs, and you have to perform or else we will have problems. But you need to take one guy off on 60 minutes. And you cannot do that at Manchester United – you cannot think like that.”
“I cannot [in normal circumstances] change three guys because I have to try to maintain the team to be fit to win the Europa League. I had that feeling during the season of ‘I’m so frustrated, I cannot do nothing and I acknowledge that so I have to wait.”
“And to wait, being manager of Manchester United, is like going into a fight with my hands like this …”
There were suggestions that Amorim was considering walk away from United as results worsened.
Asked about this, he answered, “No, [to] walk away is … more an ego thing. I’m like that. When things go bad, I put my place because it’s … I don’t know .. maybe an ego thing. I’m maybe really romantic about things.”
“It was mostly a feeling that I’m disappointing all these people. That was the feeling that made me think ‘What should I do?’. There were some moments last year that were really hard on me. Not because… I know what to do to change the club… but because I’m disappointing all these people.”
“And I know that in football, when you lose so many games, it’s hard for everybody to believe in one idea and all the changes. So there were some moments last year that I was really, really frustrated.”
Amorim stressed that he no longer feels the need to walk away, courtesy of the renewed energy and optimism he has for the club.
“I know that last season I used all the credits but I’m ready to start fresh. All the credit I had when I arrived, I know that last year was used on that so now we have to perform. And I really like the pressure. I will be okay.”
“If I have the feeling that before the game that we are going to be competitive we’ll be okay. I just don’t want to return to that feeling that we are thinking it’s not a 50-50 game. I know there is a massive gap, with where we finished.
He pointed out that United must aim to return to Europe.
Featured image Michael Steele via Getty Images
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Derick Kinoti
Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
