Ruben Amorim delivers brutal truth about dreading Man Utd matches for one reason

Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim has admitted he did not look forward to the Red Devils’ fixtures last term but has greater hope for the season ahead amid his pre-season preparations

Ruben Amorim has revealed he dreaded going to games last season because he knew his Manchester United side were not good enough to compete. Amorim took over from Erik ten Hag last November and won just seven of his 27 Premier League games, as United finished the season in 15th place.

It led Amorim to question whether he was good enough to lead United and he even offered to quit with no compensation if the club felt that was right. But United stood by Amorim, who has carried on the task of reviving the fallen giants, after admitting he went into games last season fearing the worst.

“To tell you the truth, it was not how I returned to my house after the games,” said Amorim, during a break from United’s US tour. “It was how I left to go to the games, because I felt that sometimes we would struggle.

“All the struggles that we had in the games, I could feel it before, so that was the hardest part – to go to the games and know that we were not going to be competitive, how we should be. That was the hardest part.

“When I returned, I just looked to my family and tried to think about different things. But if you want to know the most difficult moment, it was before the games, because I knew that we will struggle in specific games.

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“I had the feeling during the season that I was so frustrated. I could do nothing, I acknowledged that, so I had to wait.

“Being manager of Manchester United was like going to a fight with my hands like this [down by his side]. So that was the frustration.

“There were some moments that were really hard on me, because I felt I was disappointing all of these people.

“When you lose so many games it’s hard on everybody to believe in one idea and all the changes. So there were moments when I was really, really frustrated.

“I just don’t want to return to that feeling that we’re thinking that it’s not a 50-50 game. I think we will be a better team. Not just because I truly believe we can be better. But I truly believe there are a lot of players who can do better – and I can be a better manager as well.”

Managing United may be one of the most high-pressure jobs in world football, but Amorim has a healthy sense of perspective when it comes to his role. “This is not the moment I felt the most pressure in my life,” said Amorim. “I had a career as a player and I finished really soon because of injuries.

“My wife and I had an Excel sheet with all of the money we had and all of the things that we needed, because I wanted to help my family. With all of that responsibility, I felt the pressure at that time.

“Nowadays, I don’t feel any pressure about that. It’s more like an ego thing. I want to be manager of United for a while and I took five years to choose this club, so I don’t want to fail. That’s the only pressure.

“The other pressure, the pressure at the end of my career as a footballer, was different. That was more difficult to deal with.”

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