Sean Dyche sets record straight on Ruben Amorim ‘clickbait’ after Man Utd backlash

Sean Dyche has been speaking ahead of Nottingham Forest’s Premier League clash with Manchester United on Saturday, and the Forest boss has sought to clarify his comments about Ruben Amorim

Nottingham Forest boss Sean Dyche has clarified his previous remarks about Manchester United under Ruben Amorim. Dyche, who previously managed Everton and Burnley, took over from former Tottenham Hotspur head coach Ange Postecoglou at the City Ground on 21 October.

The club was in a downward spiral under the Australian, failing to secure a win in any of their eight matches before owner Evangelos Marinakis gave him the boot just 17 minutes after a 3-0 loss to Chelsea earlier this month. So far, Dyche has overseen just two games for Forest – a victory against Porto in the Europa League and a defeat at Bournemouth last weekend.

He is now preparing to manage his first home Premier League match for the East Midlands club this Saturday against United, with kick-off at 3pm. This weekend’s fixture brings to light Dyche’s previous comments about Amorim’s tactics at Old Trafford.

READ MORE: Ruben Amorim responds to Sean Dyche over brutal Man Utd comments – ‘Maybe it’s true’READ MORE: Ruben Amorim puts Lisandro Martinez in his place as Man Utd boss singles out three players

Speaking to the Stick to Football Podcast in May, Dyche suggested that he would have had more success than the Portuguese if he had been chosen to replace Erik ten Hag last November.

“He’s not going to change the way he plays. He [Ruben Amorim] better win some games – pretty quick,” Dyche said. “I reckon if I went there and played my way, we’d win more games. Just 4-4-2 – give them basic rules of principles.

“We’re all going, ‘Fair play’ – but, he’s been there a while now so you better start bringing some wins soon.”

The 54-year-old has now set the record straight during Thursday’s pre-match press conference – insisting his remarks were twisted out of all proportion.

“I didn’t question him as a person and I would never do that. Clickbait kills anything,” he said. “I equally said I want managers to be given time and I said he should get half a season to continue what he’s doing.

“I have maximum respect for all managers. I’m pretty sure his media department will have made that clear to him.

“The basics may have worked better was my suggestion and they have changed their style so fair play to him. Not necessarily their beliefs but their style.

“They are playing quicker forward and longer, a bit tighter in getting back into their shape. That’s management, that’s coaching.

“That doesn’t mean he’s changed his whole philosophy, it’s adapting to what’s in front of him so fair play to him. He’s shown a bit of flexibility and they’re getting results.”

Meanwhile, Amorim has revealed he grasps why Dyche initially took aim at his United squad.

“First of all, maybe it’s true if we play 4-4-2,” he smiled at his pre-match press conference on Thursday. “We won more games, but I always said that I have a way of playing that is going to take a while, but in the future it’s going to be better. So we don’t know that. Then I can look at Sean Dyche as a manager and then as a pundit.

“If you are a pundit and you don’t say very strong things, I don’t want to watch you! I’m the same. So I can understand that it’s a completely different job. I know that Sean Dyche is really smart and he knows how to play the game.

“And he also understands that one thing is when we are seeing the game and talking about the game, the other thing is to coach a team. So I understand that, I have nothing to say, I just want to win the next game.”

Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don’t like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you’re curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.