Pressure is ramping up on the Manchester United head coach after the derby day defeat to Man City.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe watches on at the Manchester derby
Sir Jim Ratcliffe watches on at the Manchester derby
Manchester United's defeat to Manchester City on Sunday was the latest in a string of bruising defeats for the club.
United have now lost three of their opening five games of the season, with their Carabao Cup elimination at the hands of fourth tier Grimsby Town the most chastening of all.
In the two games this season where United have avoided defeat, they threw away a one-goal lead at Fulham and needed a last-gasp penalty to avoid dropping points at home to newly-promoted Burnley.
It's not been the start Ruben Amorim had hoped for, with an uplifting pre-season campaign and a heavy spend in the summer transfer window raising expectation levels at Old Trafford prior to the start of the season.
In a table consisting of the 17 ever-present Premier League clubs since Amorim's appointment last season, United are bottom of the pile, and pressure is building on the Portuguese chief.
Next up is a home clash with Chelsea before games against Brentford and Sunderland. If United fail to string together a run of positive results, talk around Amorim's future will only intensify over the October international break. But what have the Old Trafford decision makers had to say about the United boss?
Sir Jim Ratcliffe spoke to the BBC back in March, and he was full of praise for the former Sporting coach.
"I think Ruben is an outstanding young manager. I really do," he said. "I think he is an excellent manager and I think he'll be there for a long time.
"I think if you look at the squad he has got at his disposal, with the injury list he has got at his disposal, and he comes in mid-season where he has had no time to train the players in his style of play, I think he has done really well.
"I think you are beginning to see a glimpse of what Ruben can produce. I think you saw a glimpse of that against Arsenal yesterday."