Man United said ‘it was now or never’, new manager Ruben Amorim says
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Sporting Lisbon coach Ruben Amorim speaking at a press conference on his transfer to Manchester United.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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LISBON – Ruben Amorim revealed on Nov 1 that he was told by Manchester United “it was now or never” as he looked ahead to taking over the Old Trafford hot seat midway through the season.
The 39-year-old Sporting Lisbon coach was confirmed as the new United manager the sacked Erik ten Hag.
However, his initial desire was to stay with the Portuguese champions until the end of the season and then switch to the English Premier League in the summer – an idea quickly quashed by United.
“The only question I made was to go at the end of the season,” Amorim told a news conference.
“But I was told it was now or never. I had three days to make the decision. That’s what I did. If I rejected it now, in six months I would not have got it.
“I didn’t want to regret making this decision.”
On Nov 1, Amorim saw Sporting defeat Estrela 5-1 for a 10th win in 10 Portuguese league games this season.
He admitted that his players were affected after news of United’s interest in him broke. But now that everything is official, he is ready to continue doing his best for Sporting in the two games he has left at the club.
They host Manchester City in the Champions League on Nov 5, before their league game at Braga.
“It’s my choice to leave Sporting,” added Amorim, who will officially take charge of United on Nov 11, while he also said that he had already planned to leave Sporting at the end of the season.
But it was still a difficult decision which “will completely change my life”.
“I had the best period of my life here, but it’s my choice (to leave),” he said. “Manchester was the club I wanted after Sporting.”
United’s next match is at home against Chelsea in the English Premier League on Nov 3, with interim manager Ruud van Nistelrooy in charge.
Blues manager Enzo Maresca is relishing a reunion with his former teammate, the Italian said on Nov 1.
Maresca, a former midfielder, played with van Nistelrooy during their time at Malaga in the 2011-2012 season near the end of the striker’s career.
It will be the Dutchman’s second game in charge at United after a 5-2 League Cup home win over Leicester City in midweek.
“I will give van Nistelrooy a big hug before the game,” Maresca said. “We expect a tough game. He’s a fantastic guy, humble, and very professional.
“We had a very good group of human beings at that time at Malaga. It’s nice to remember those moments.”
At Old Trafford, Chelsea lost 2-1 in December and were thrashed 4-1 in May 2023. They are without a win in their last 11 league visits, with six draws and five losses.
“Hopefully, it’s a good time to play them. It’s a really tough place to win and our recent record shows that,” added Maresca.
He has a fully fit squad to choose from apart from on-loan forward Jadon Sancho, who has been ill, but is in any case ineligible to feature against his parent club United.
Maresca also heaped praise on Chelsea’s in-form Cole Palmer, who has scored seven goals and registered five assists from nine league games this season, but said he will not place undue pressure on the 22-year-old midfielder.
“As I said at the start of the season, if we expect 20 goals and 20 assists from him again then that’s wrong. We shouldn’t put that pressure on him,” he added.
“He needs to enjoy his football and when he does that you can see what he can do. Cole plays well even when he doesn’t score because he allows the rest (of the team) to play in the right way. He’s a very important player for us.” AFP, REUTERS
