Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim
Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim (Image: Manchester United via Getty Images)
Ruben Amorim has arguably the most unenviable job in the entirety of the Premier League after the state in which the season ended for Manchester United.
Losing the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur was the sucker-punch at the end of a truly dreadful Premier League campaign. After sacrificing domestic form for so long, being defeated by Spurs left the atmosphere surrounding the club flatter than it has ever been previously.
For that reason, you could imagine a lesser manager would have chosen to creep off the pitch on Sunday after defeating Aston Villa. Instead, Amorim stood up and gave rousing speech, doing his best possible job of trying to rally the supporters.
"First of all, I want to apologise for this season," the Portuguese began. He added that he acknowledged that this season was a 'disaster' before insisting the 'good days are coming'.
Immediately after the victory over Villa, the team flew out to Malaysia for their post-season tour and addressing the assembled media on Tuesday, Amorim continued to lay down the gauntlet for his current squad. He insisted that he did not need a rest and while a trophy-less season is 'really tough', he feels there are reasons to have some positivity and insisted the lack of Champions League football next year will make transfer business limited.
Amorim all but confirmed in this moment that he is expecting a good chunk of this current squad to still be here next season and that he needs them to perform an awful lot better. These bold statements and honest opinions are why Amorim is so well liked on the Old Trafford terraces.
He is not trying to sugarcoat the problem like some previous managers, he is telling it like it is. One unpopular previous manager, Ralf Rangnick, said that United need open heart surgery and that is still the case.
While his predecessor tried to shun away from that, Amorim has embraced it and doing so shall only help his cause with supporters. Nobody likes to feel as though the wool is being pulled over their eyes.
This is exactly why United have chosen to stick with their manager this summer and back him to complete the rebuild of this squad. He is not afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve and that shall hopefully only impact these players beneficially next season.
---
Here at The Manchester Evening News, we are dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester United coverage and analysis.
Make sure you don't miss out on the latest United news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.
You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day's biggest stories.
And, finally, if you would rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Manchester is Red podcast, featuring The Samuel Luckhurst Show and The Midweek Debate. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.