Ruben Amorim ‘felt betrayed’ by Manchester United before the Portuguese manager was sacked by the club on Monday morning after his press conference outburst
Ruben Amorim ‘felt betrayed’ by Manchester United before he was sacked on Monday morning after his sensational outburst after the 1-1 draw against Leeds United.
Amorim was sacked by United following a reported “breakdown in relations”. A statement from the club read: “Ruben Amorim has departed his role as Head Coach of Manchester United.
“Ruben was appointed in November 2024 and led the team to a UEFA Europa League Final in Bilbao in May. 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. Darren Fletcher will take charge of the team against Burnley on Wednesday.”
The Red Devils came from behind to claim a point at Elland Road on Sunday as Matheus Cunha cancelled out Brenden Aaronson’s goal just three minutes later. Following the goal, United got more of a foothold in the game and looked to be the team that would force a late winning goal, but both defences remained strong.
In his post-match press conference, an agitated Amorim stormed out after seemingly aiming a dig at the United hierarchy. Amorim claimed he could leave at the end of his deal which expires in 18 months.
He fumed: “I just want to say that I came here to be the manager of Manchester United – not the head coach. That’s going to finish in 18 months, and then everyone is going to move on. That’s the deal, that’s my job.
“I know my name is not (Thomas) Tuchel, is not (Antonio) Conte and is not (Jose) Mourinho. But I am the manager of Manchester United and it is going to be like this for 18 months, or (until) when the board decides to change.”
He added: “It’s going to be like this until the board decide to change. I’m not going to quit. I will do my job until another guy comes to replace me.
“If people cannot handle the Gary Nevilles and the critics of everything, we need to change the club. I just want to say that. I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach.
“And every department, the scouting department, the sporting director, needs to do their job. I will do mine for 18 months and then we will watch.”
Body language expert Darren Stanton analysed Amorim’s bizarre press conference and said, via OLBG, that the Portuguese feels “betrayed” by the club and is “full of regret”.
“Ruben Amorim is such an expressive person and it’s been interesting to see the evolution of his press conferences,” he said.
“He was being pressed for an answer on the question of transfers and his formation and he gave that response to say he doesn’t want to talk about it, and as the line of questioning continued we saw Amorim show a real flash of anger.
“Amorim’s eyes are pierced. His eyebrows are down. It’s a facial expression as if to say I’ve told you, now move on. He is p***** off at being pinned down on this topic.
“We then see a sly smile across his face. That’s contempt. It’s what we call a bilateral smile. It is a gestural slip.
“When we smile on one side of our face, it’s a way of expressing contempt and in this context it’s Amorim effectively saying that he’s said all he wants to say, and now you’re not listening to me.
“We also see furrow lines on his forehead. That’s a combination of frustrations, the anger and a kind of inner turmoil over his situation. He’s not a happy person at all. He is not in a very good place at all, emotionally.”
Stanton continued: “It’s a great line of questioning by the journalist and Amorim’s comment at the end of the exchange.”
“To call the journalist very smart was an admission that the questions were getting too close for comfort. They were hitting the mark, hitting a nerve, and they were the wrong questions to ask right now for how Amorim was feeling.
“However, Amorim isn’t levelling the accountability for this situation on his team. He looks like a man who feels he’s been wheeled out for a cross-examination in court for issues that aren’t down to him.
“Amorim looks like a man full of regret because things aren’t going the way he wanted on the pitch or how he expected from the club when it comes to what he was sold when he took the job.
“He’s clearly a competitive guy. I think he’s feeling frustration and angst over United not having already progressed further than they have since he joined the club, and now he’s being quizzed about things that he doesn’t want to discuss in the context of a press conference.
“I think he feels betrayed and misled but I think for the most part it’s betrayal. I think he feels he’s been thrown under the bus.”