‘A Lot of Mistakes’—Ruben Amorim Pulls Back the Curtain on Disastrous Man Utd Reign

The Portuguese manager had a disastrous spell at Old Trafford.

Ruben Amorim has taken charge of AC Milan after failing in Manchester. | Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

Ruben Amorim admitted to making “a lot of mistakes” during his time as Manchester United manager and said he “learned a lot” from his experiences at Old Trafford.

Amorim garnered a lofty reputation for his work at Sporting CP, guiding the Lisbon-based club to a pair of Primeira Liga titles during a four-year reign. He ranked among Europe’s most exciting young managers, and United spent as much as £11 million ($14.6 million) to buy Amorim out of his Sporting contract.

However, within 14 months, the club was paying another £15.9 million ($21.2 million) to dismiss the Portuguese coach and his staff. His reign was far from a success, and Michael Carrick’s stellar work as his successor only damaged Amorim’s United legacy further.

His framework simply wasn’t conducive to success at the highest level. Managers have seldom flourished with a back three since Antonio Conte won the Premier League with Chelsea a decade ago, with Amorim’s United surrendering far too much control in games, thus rendering themselves liable to the variance of Premier League soccer.

He was let go in January following a falling out with the club’s hierarchy, but has since taken over from Massimiliano Allegri as AC Milan’s manager.

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Amorim Hopes to Learn From Man Utd ‘Mistakes’ at Milan

Amorim was appointed by Milan in mid-June. | Andrew Milligan/PA Images/Getty Images

Amorim’s time with United was disastrous, as he boasted the worst Premier League win ratio (32%), the worst goals conceded per game ratio (1.53) and the lowest clean sheet ratio (15%) of any manager in the club’s history.

Still, a grand institution like AC Milan are backing him to return the Rossoneri to the summit of Serie A. The 2021–22 Scudetto holders have finished eighth and fifth in back-to-back seasons, moving on from Allegri in May.

Amorim was appointed on June 15, and has opened up to the media about his time with the Red Devils.

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Ruben Amorim’s Man Utd Record

Ruben Amorim led Manchester United to historic lows. | Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images

Statistic	Total
Games Managed	63
Won	25
Drawn	15
Lost	23
Win %	39.7
+/-	+8

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“The first thing is that it doesn’t matter anymore,” Amorim told reporters during a press conference on Milan’s preseason tour down under. “That is the feeling. There’s a history, then something happens, the context changes, and you focus on the next challenge.”

Poor results and a lack of identity proved key in United deciding to part ways with Amorim earlier this year, but so was the manager’s relationship breakdown with members of the hierarchy, including director of football Jason Wilcox.

He publicly took aim at his employers during a memorable rant after a 1–1 draw at Leeds United, which proved to be his final game in charge.

“I learned a lot,” Amorim went on to say. “It would be hard to point to one thing, but the important thing that I clearly know is that I made a lot of mistakes. When you do this kind of reflection, and you understand that it was not just their fault, but also my fault, I think you can be a better coach and a better man.”

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