Manchester United officials have confirmed that the club has parted ways with embattled coach Ruben Amorim on Monday following an explosive news conference after the Leeds United draw.
United issued the following statement regarding the dismissal: “Ruben Amorim has departed his role as Head Coach of Manchester United. With Manchester United sitting sixth in the Premier League, the club’s leadership has reluctantly made the decision that it is the right time to make a change.”
“This will give the team the best opportunity of the highest possible Premier League finish. The club would like to thank Ruben for his contribution to the club and wishes him well for the future.”
Amorim, who had reportedly been at odds with director of football Jason Wilcox for some time now, told reporters that the United bosses needed to “do your jobs”. He would go on to add that he needed more control over the team, and wanted to be the “manager, not the coach”, before once again urging United executives to do their jobs.
The Portuguese bench boss also pulled out of a scheduled broadcast interview citing personal reasons, forcing the club to pivot and send defender Lisandro Martinez in his place at the 11th hour. Man U. have stated that the dismissal was not because of any personal reasons, but rather that the club “had not seen enough signs of evolution or progress”.
Through 20 games in the Premier League, United sit in 6th place with an 8-7-5 record on the year. The club however has just 1 win in their last 5 contests, and have played a rather uninspiring brand of soccer over the last month.
According to sources, Amorim wasn’t pleased with the clubs approach to the recent January transfer window, which saw the club stand pat on their current roster. The club has insisted that the 40 year old was in lockstep with management’s course of action, and has only now voiced displeasure with it after the fact.
The break up marks the end of a turbulent 14 month partnership following Amorim’s appointment in November of 2024. During that time, the Red Devils won just 24 of their 63 matches, with only 15 Premier League victories over that span.
Amorim took over from Erik ten Hag following another testy firing by the United brass. In the meantime, U18 manager Darren Fletcher will take over coaching duties ahead of the team’s upcoming trip to Burnley on Wednesday. Reports indicate that the club is considering rolling with an interim solution for the time being until they can hire a permanent replacement following a wide candidate search.
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