Football finance expert warns Manchester United could face a £20m hit if they decide to part ways with Ruben Amorim
Manchester United suffered a 3-0 defeat in the Manchester Derby at the Etihad Stadium on September 14, and this result deepened the uneasiness and insecurity across the club. Phil Foden gave Manchester City the lead by scoring the first goal, and then Erling Haaland scored two goals in the second half to make the match completely one-sided. United showed clear weaknesses on the field, as their blunt attack and constant defensive lapses left them vulnerable to an even bigger defeat.
Fans expected experienced players like Luke Shaw and Bruno Fernandes to perform, but both disappointed. The most worrying aspect is that despite heavy investment, United sit 14th in the Premier League table with only four points from the first four matches. This marks their worst start in 33 years.
Ruben Amorim’s record since November has only made matters worse, as he has managed just eight wins in 31 Premier League games. BBC Sport reports that his win percentage is the lowest of any permanent manager since World War II. This is why there is growing anger among critics and fans over his insistence on sticking to his 3-4-2-1 system.
Amorim’s tactics and Manchester United’s future:
Football finance expert warns Manchester United could face a £20m hit if they decide to part ways with Ruben Amorim.
Manchester United and Ruben Amorim: Sacking Twist Sparks Huge Shock
The decision to back Amorim or sack him has put the club’s new management in a quandary. If the club sack him now, it could cost around £20 million, as Dan Plumley of Sheffield Hallam University told Football Insider. While that’s a hefty amount, the impact a string of poor results could have on the club’s reputation and future could prove far more damaging. United have spent almost £100 million sacking managers over the past decade, and if this trend continues, the consequences could be even more severe.
“It’s an expensive business. We’ve seen Manchester United go down that road with high compensation fees for managers in the past, and if you look at the kind of baseline numbers, it’ll be somewhere in the middle of what the contract is worth.
“There might be a clause in there that dictates that on termination, he would get X per cent of that per year.* *So if he is on £10 million a year, and it’s another two years to run, for argument’s sake, that’s a £20m contract for him if he stays in that role.
“The release clause, therefore, might be set a little bit lower than that, or it’ll be somewhere in the lines of negotiation. You would anticipate it being less than £20m, and it might already be fixed, as an example.
“So you can get to rough numbers where you can conceivably say, right, so it’s going to be in the region of less than the overall value that’s left, and it might already be fixed in, but whichever way you cut that, it’s gonna be at least single-digit millions if he is to go.
“And then, of course, to bring a new manager in, you’ve got the cost of that salary as well, so it is a costly business, hiring and firing managers.”
Amorim is adamant on his current philosophy:
Sky Sports also reveals that Amorim’s refusal to move away from his 3-4-2-1 formation does not match the ability of the current players. Patience often makes sense, but if results continue to deteriorate, waiting until January could mean losing the season altogether. In this context, reports say Brighton demand €120 million for Carlos Baleba and United are willing to pay, but the question is whether such an investment makes sense without the manager making the right adjustments.
Meanwhile, Adam Wharton seems to be leaning towards Liverpool, while Real Madrid have joined the race, and Amorim has no concrete answer in the middle of all this. In all this, there is a growing feeling among United fans that if there is no immediate change, the season could be irreparably lost. If the club give a new manager time to properly evaluate the squad ahead of the next transfer window, it could be the most practical way to plan for the future. However, then again, United might have to give him time till Christmas unless the shocking results continue to follow in the upcoming matches.