Soccer

Rúben Amorim downplays expectations in advance of City’s Champions League visit to Lisbon

Manchester City’s fixture Amorim’s final home game as head coach before taking over at cross-town rivals

Rúben Amorim: 'If we win tomorrow they will think the new Alex Ferguson has arrived. That will be very difficult.' Photograph: Zed Jameson/PA
Rúben Amorim: 'If we win tomorrow they will think the new Alex Ferguson has arrived. That will be very difficult.' Photograph: Zed Jameson/PA
Jamie Jackson
Mon Nov 04 2024 - 19:00

Incoming Manchester United manager Rúben Amorim has claimed supporters will think he is the “new Alex Ferguson” if his current side, Sporting Lisbon, beat Manchester City in the Champions League on Tuesday and said that could make expectations around his impact at Old Trafford “difficult”.

City’s visit to the Estádio José Alvalade is Amorim’s last home game as Sporting head coach before taking over at United on Monday week. The 39-year-old’s opening match as Erik ten Hag’s successor is against Ipswich on November 24th and he will take his new team to the Etihad Stadium on December 15th for a first derby against City.

Amorim was asked how he feels about potentially becoming a hero to United supporters by securing a victory over their local rivals this week, in matchday four of the new Champions League format, and he provided a somewhat cautious response. “I don’t think about that,” he said. “My focus is on winning the match for Sporting. The conclusions are not important for me because they could be erroneous: if we win tomorrow they will think the new Alex Ferguson has arrived. That will be very difficult. It could increase expectations, I don’t know what is better when I start my new adventure.”

Amorim was asked how taking on City on Tuesday can aid him when facing Pep Guardiola’s side in the Premier League. “I think that tomorrow I will learn a lot during the matches, one thing to watch on TV another is to see it live,” he said. “When I go to Man Utd I will have a different idea, but I don’t know what I will find.”

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Amorim spent time at United’s Carrington training base in 2018 as he sought to gain his coaching qualifications and said he was made to feel welcome by José Mourinho, the club’s then Portuguese manager. Asked if he has spoken to Mourinho about his appointment to the post, Amorim replied: “I haven’t yet, he’s full of games [at Fenerbahçe] and so am I.

“The impact [of my visit] had on my career was the way he treated me. He showed me that you can win everything and be a different person than you think. A special coach who opened the door. I will have time to talk to him, he is very experienced. Regarding my experience in Manchester, it was the only club where I did an internship, but I never said, ‘I want to come back as a coach.’ But [more] let’s see what happens.”

City beat Sporting 5-0 in a Champions League last-16 first-leg tie two years ago. It was a bruising night for Amorim two years into his reign there but he insists he has learned from the experience and moved on. “I feel like a better coach, but Guardiola is also a better coach,” he said. “The distance [between us] remains. We play in different championships, but I feel like I have better players [than then]. We are prepared to make a more complete game. Let’s see — tomorrow will be a good game to look at all these nuances.”

Regarding City’s visit being his last in front of Sporting home fans, Amorim said: “I will be able to control my emotions. It is important to win. If so it helps me to leave with more joy. There were many games here, some very remarkable moments, some very difficult. But it will be my last in Alvalade and it will be special.”

Hugo Viana, Sporting’s director of football, will replace Txiki Begiristain as City’s sporting director next summer. With Guardiola’s future at the club uncertain, Amorim was asked if this caused him to think he may have been in contention to replace the Catalan at the Premier League champions. “It is something that crosses your mind but I never had any doubt. My decision is made,” he said. “I wanted Man United and that is what I did.” — Guardian