It has now been a month since Ruben Amorim was appointed as the new Manchester United and, after an initial five games of his stewardship, a new report has revealed that he believes the job is ‘more complicated than he first thought’.
Last month, the 39-year-old Portuguese followed in the footsteps of Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and, more notably, Erik ten Hag to become the latest man to attempt to turn around one of the biggest clubs in world football.
So far in charge of the Old Trafford-based outfit, having inherited a ponderous squad, he has drawn once – 1-1 with Ipswich Town – won on two occasions, 4-0 over Everton and 3-2 against Bodo/Glimt, but recent results have tainted his perception.
Libson-born Amorim’s mood has been dampened in recent times with losses to Arsenal and Nottingham Forest, which ended 2-0 and 3-2 respectively, being only the second time in his managerial career that he has tasted defeat back-to-back.
On the back of dropping valuable points in consecutive Premier League outings, a telling report has insisted that the former Sporting CP chief is shocked at the magnitude of the job at hand, one that will potentially require a major squad overhaul.
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The latest updates contradict the initial understanding that the parting of ways was a mutual and amicable process
According to ESPN, Omar Berrada made no attempt to ‘sugarcoat’ how much turmoil Manchester United were under in the early stages of the newly arrived CEO’s stint. But, even so, Amorim is still under the impression that the club are in need of more than just a minor face lift.
“Amorim's appointment as Erik ten Hag's successor was led, primarily, by [Omar] Berrada. During negotiations, the newly installed CEO didn't try to sugarcoat the size of the task," ESPN's report suggested.
"But sources have told ESPN that Amorim already believes the job will be more complicated than he first thought. His five games in charge have yielded two wins, two defeats, a draw, and a mixed bag of performances.”
Next up for the 13-time Premier League champions is a Europa League meeting with Viktoria Plzen on Thursday evening. Sat in 12th place after five outings, a resounding win against the Czech Republic-based side – one to get the fans fully onboard – is a must.