If Pep Guardiola couldn’t eat, sleep or stop scratching his head during Manchester City’s poor run of form, imagine how new Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim feels in the bottom half of the league after five defeats in six matches.
‘You can see in my face — you can compare the way I arrived and now,’ says the 39-year-old, just 48 days into the hardest job in English football.
Amorim laughs at his own suggestion of premature ageing but is deadly serious about the weight on his shoulders heading into Sunday’s game at table-topping Liverpool, which United fans fear might end in humiliation.
While Guardiola, 14 years Amorim’s senior and with grown-up children, often has to endure the difficult times alone, his United counterpart is glad to have been joined by his wife and kids as he attempts to rouse England’s sleeping giant.
‘My family came on the 27th (of December). It was a good day,’ he explains with more than a degree of relief. ‘I have them here now so it’s different, it can help me.’
Family is key for Amorim and is why he was unwilling to follow his idol, Jose Mourinho, by staying too long alone in the Lowry Hotel where his compatriot resided for 935 days.
Ruben Amorim’s Manchester United are in the bottom half of the Premier League with five defeats in their last six matches
United take on Liverpool on Sunday in a game fans fear may end in humiliation for their side
While Pep Guardiola often has to deal with hard times alone, Amorim has his family with him
Family gives Amorim perspective; he gets a sense of calm amid the hysteria that comes when things go wrong — a weekly battle these days.
It was one of the key reasons why Amorim was unwilling to cancel last Tuesday’s planned family day.
United had been bullied on their own patch by Newcastle but, rather than pile that pressure on Pep-style, Amorim wanted to take a different route. So, in came players’ wives, girlfriends and young children to eat breakfast with the first team and coaches before watching training.
Then the players — who sources say were lifted by the presence of their families — had a kickabout with their kids before enjoying entertainment which included face painting. Wednesday brought a day off — normal with no midweek game or travel — and sources spoke of that being a well-timed ‘reset’ moment.
The optimism which was in the building after Amorim’s first game against Ipswich Town and the wins over Bodo/Glimt and Everton has been replaced by a weariness and stress that comes with being 14th in the league.
Sponsorship deals demand European football. Supporters are restless. Respected figures in the game, like Mail Sport columnist Martin Keown, believe Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 must be amended to keep this season afloat.
But sources stress that Amorim is firmly standing by his philosophy, and Thursday saw an extra-long training session which resulted in Sky’s interview slot with the boss being pushed back two hours. For the first time since replacing Erik ten Hag, Amorim had a game-free week where he could work with his players.
Drilling players on set pieces — on which they have been particularly poor since assistant Carlos Fernandes took the reins; drilling players on positioning; drilling players on their fitness. This was the week Amorim made no secret he was desperate for.
Amorim will not budge on his 3-4-2-1 system despite his side’s poor run of recent results
He has, this week, had a full week with his players on the training ground for the first time
Fans fear a humiliation when they take on Arne Slot’s high-flying Liverpool on Sunday
This week, however, United held a family day, which is hoped to have helped lift the mood – pictured: Harry Maguire with wife Fern
‘There’s no panic from the boss,’ one source said.
While the charismatic Amorim is already hugely popular, he is also something of a smiling assassin.
Marcus Rashford and his £325,000-a-week contract have been kicked to the curb. He has been suffering with illness this week and is highly unlikely to feature in the squad on Sunday.
Alejandro Garnacho learned the hard way not to mess with the boss after he was axed for the Manchester derby after a show of dissent at Viktoria Plzen.
The Argentine is top scorer with eight goals — seven before Amorim took over — but the new system doesn’t suit wingers, plus he has fallen below the standards Amorim expects. It feels as though there is a clearer path back than for Rashford, but the youngster remains a potentially moveable asset in the summer.
Teenagers Kobbie Mainoo and Leny Yoro are being made to work for every appearance. Yoro has started just three games under Amorim while Mainoo has made four starts in eight.
‘It is really hard. It is supposed to be hard,’ Amorim said. And with Liverpool and Arsenal up next, he knows it’s only getting tougher. Now, in the eyes of the main man, is not the time to crack up.
