Ruben Amorim could soon find himself in need of a new job if things don’t rapidly improve at Manchester United.
The Red Devils found themselves, once again, a clear second best to their city rivals in Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City on Sunday.
A 3-0 defeat at the Etihad consigned the visitors to 14th place in the Premier League table with four points secured after gameweek four.
Roy Keane raises serious Ruben Amorim concern
Roy Keane, quite understandably, has some serious reservations about what he witnessed at the Etihad this weekend.
The Irishman pointed out that there have still yet to be ‘signs’ of progress at United despite the club having committed to vast sums in the summer transfer window.
“We were told the manager needed a pre-season, his own players and they have spent over £200m so we keep making excuses. When are we going to see signs?” the former Manchester United star spoke on Sky Sports.
“You see Slot going into Liverpool, they end up winning the league and Frank to Spurs, are they improving? Yeah.
“My worry is… maybe the players haven’t got that much faith in it. As much as the manager is saying ‘this is where we are going’, as the results don’t come and you are getting beaten by the better teams, he is making loads of changes… it is like they are going round in circles.
“We gave him the benefit of the doubt when he first came in.”
To be fair, we do agree with Gary Neville that Amorim doesn’t necessarily have the right tools in midfield to suit his system.
However, in the immediate future, how are we supposed to compete in the Premier League until such a point when we can address the middle of the park in the market?
Can we bring in the right tools without the riches of Champions League football at our disposal (never mind the attracting properties of top European football)?
Could Manchester United sack Amorim this season?
You get the sense there will be a cut-off point of sorts should United continue to tumble down the table.
Getting involved in a relegation scrap, for instance, would surely invite Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Co. to pull the plug on Ruben Amorim’s tenure at Old Trafford.
But on the flip side of the coin, there’s an argument to be made for Manchester United seeing this tactical experiment through.
With a midfield makeover – and bear in mind the club had genuine interest in Brighton’s Carlos Baleba this summer – could we become seriously more competitive moving forward?
It’s a big question that will require a further serious injection of cash in a future market to provide any clear answers.
But it remains to be seen whether Amorim will still be around by that point to witness the fruits of his labours.
