Ruben Amorim's reason for nearly quitting club as Man Utd boss faces huge challenge
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Ruben Amorim almost quit his first managerial job after facing struggles similar to his horror start at Manchester United - until a change of formation turned his fortunes around. Amorim was brought in by United chiefs in November as Erik ten Hag’s successor, abandoning his hugely successful Sporting CP project less than halfway through the season. But the 39-year-old has thus far failed to end the decade-long nightmare at Old Trafford.
The Portuguese head coach recently admitted that the United job is “more complicated” than he first thought, having suffered five defeats this month alone, including three on the bounce since the dramatic win against rivals Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Red Devils bosses are expected to give Amorim plenty of time to save their sinking ship as he looks to make a success of his newly-implemented 3-4-2-1 formation. United’s new formation has shown some early signs of promise but is still far from the well-oiled machine that became his trademark in Portugal.
Amorim took charge of at-the-time third tier Portuguese side Casa Pia in 2018 and vowed to quit if results didn’t pick up following a poor start. But he decided to switch to his now-trusted back-three in a move that may have saved his managerial career.
European football expert Guillem Balague told BBC Sport: "His coaching career actually began with Casa Pia, then a third-tier club, where it almost ended as soon as it had begun. "He lost his first two games and, with his pride hurt and doubts setting in, he announced if he lost the third game he would quit. In the next match he changed the system and played a back three for the first time.
