Ruben Amorim looked nothing short of a broken man when he addressed reporters in the aftermath of Manchester United’s Carabao Cup exit.
The 20-time champions of England have just two competitions left to fight for before the first month of the season has even drawn to a close, which comes only three months after a campaign in which the side recorded their lowest-ever Premier League finish on record (15th).
Amorim, meanwhile, is three months shy of his first year in the job, but there is now growing uncertainty over whether he’ll actually reach the milestone.
Could Amorim depart United after less than a year?
Given the managerial merry-go-round fans have endured since Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure, it’s unlikely that INEOS would be the ones to cut ties with Amorim prematurely.
However, he could instead decide to do it himself.
Recognising that he is no longer a suitable fit for the role and pulling the plug himself would leave him in better standing with any potential future clubs than it would if he stayed put and continued tarnishing his personal record before eventually being relieved of his duties.
Amorim reacts to League Cup exit
Supporters are now speculating whether that will be the case following his comments at Blundell Park last night.
Amorim suggested the players were no longer doing their utmost for the side before indicating that change was required to see differences. However, he conceded that such change is improbable to take place in the squad.
“I think the players spoke really loudly about what they want today,” the Portuguese coach told ITV Sport.
“I just want to apologise to our fans. Something has to change and you’re not going to change 22 players again.”
When further pressed whether beating Burnley (Saturday 3pm) would be the best way to respond to the United faithful, he added: “We’ve had a lot of that with our fans. So, let’s focus on the game. We have a job to do, a job to prepare and then we’ll stop and we’ll think things through.”
