It’s been more than six months since Ruben Amorim left Sporting for Manchester United but the impact he had there was so big that it’s still being felt.
Ruben Amorim is responsible for bringing Sporting back among the elites of Portuguese football and setting them up financially and from a sporting perspective.
The list of Amorim’s debutants at Sporting is a who’s who of some of the world’s best players today, while others are still at the club.
One such player, Geny Catamo, is forever indebted to Amorim for giving him his debut, and he’s now revealed when the manager told the squad he was leaving for Man Utd.
Geny Catamo of Sporting poses for photos with the Portuguese Cup 2025 Winners Trophy
Photo by Maciej Rogowski/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
Geny Catamo on Ruben Amorim leaving for Man Utd
Catamo received his first-team debut under Amorim on December 29, 2021, and has since gone on to become a mainstay at wing-back for the team.
He was originally brought for the B team, so it is understandable that he feels grateful to Amorim for trusting him with a first-team place.
Therefore, when Amorim told the squad he was set to leave for Old Trafford, it came as a hammer blow to Catamo, in particular.
Speaking on a programme called “Bar”, in the Mozambican League, Catamo revealed exactly when that happened, and how he ‘cried the most’.
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He said (quotes via Record): “A week before, we received the information that Manchester United were interested in the coach. Ruben Amorim just told us that everything was fine, not to worry, that we only had to worry about the game in Braga.
“It was an epic game, losing 2-0 and coming back to 4-2 in the second half, the best football we played all season. We were all celebrating in the dressing room, and the coach arrived and gave us the news that he was going to Manchester United.
“We were sad and cried, most of us cried, and I believe I was one of the ones who cried the most that day.”
Catamo reveals Amorim’s man-management masterclass
When Catamo was polishing his game at Vitoria, and his future at Sporting was undecided, Amorim reached out to him and gave him the ultimate sign of trust.
In the same interview, Catamo revealed how Amorim texted him when he was returning from Vitoria that he was counting on him for next season, urging him to come back at his best and ready to work.
That was the spark that lit the fire in Catamo’s belly, and the player went on to become a first-team fixture for the manager.
That is the kind of soft touch that can liberate a player to perform at his best, while giving him the motivation to run through brick walls for the manager.
Evidence of this has already been visible at United, with the likes of Andre Onana and Joshua Zirkzee coming back from bad moments to become Amorim’s disciples.
United have the right man in the dugout. He just needs time and backing.