Ruben Amorim: Six things to know about new Man Utd boss dubbed 'next Jose Mourinho'
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Manchester United are set to pay Sporting the full £8.3million to trigger the release clause in Ruben Amorim's contract.
It means that the 39-year-old is set to become the next boss at Old Trafford, having already agreed personal terms.
It follows swift moves from the United hierarchy to find Erik ten Hag's replacement after the Dutchman was sacked on Monday following a string of poor results.
With the Red Devils 14th in the Premier League, Amorim will have to work quick wonders to rope United back up the table.
Ruben Amorim looks set to become the new United manager
Reuters
But the young managerial maestro has already got experience of reigniting seasons while he already knows United captain Bruno Fernandes, who he worked with at Sporting.
So what do you need to know about incoming United manager Amorim?
Attacking players love Amorim
During Amorim's four years in charge of Sporting, they have enjoyed superstars in front of goal ranging from Pedro Goncalves, Fernandes to new hotshot Viktor Gyokores.
That will be exactly what United fans will want to see after Ten Hag's turgid football that has seen the goals dry up.
Marcus Rashford, Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee have all struggled in front of goal this season but that could all change when Amorim arrives.
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New Jose Mourinho? More like Thomas Tuchel
Amorim has himself admitted that Mourinho, arguably Portugal's best managerial export over the last 20 years, as his main framework as a coach but his style is more like new England boss Tuchel.
His Sporting side usually employ a three-at-the-back system, much like Tuchel used at Chelsea that saw them win the Champions League in 2021, and it certainly firmed up his squad defensively.
But they did not lose their attacking flair, either, and it might take a while to work out such a system at United but could be all worth the risk.
Rebuilds are his forte
Sporting have had to deal with players leaving on a regular basis, including Nuno Mendes, Matheus Nunes, Pedro Porro and Joao Palhinha under Amorim's watch, as well as Fernandes to United.
But despite the big-name departures, Sporting have always bounced back and found new gems including Gyokeres from Coventry, Ousmane Diomande from Midtjylland and Marcus Edwards from Vitoria de Guimaraes.
It shows Amorim's talent ID is one of the best in Europe and, where Ten Hag failed, he knows how to get the best out of players.
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Ruben Amorim won the Primeira Liga with Sporting last season
Reuters
Amorim's trophy hunt
Sporting fans will always be thankful to Amorim after ending a lengthy wait of 19 years for their first Primeira Liga title.
And he did so in his first full season in charge of the Lions, losing just once and conceding just 20 times, while they also won the Taca da Liga.
At former club Braga, he also won the Taca da Liga against the odds, and all eyes will be on whether he can replicate his trophy-winning form in the Premier League.
Amorim already has United experience
When Amorim arrives at United, it will not be the first time that he has walked within the club's walls.
In 2018, when Mourinho was at Old Trafford, Amorim worked as an intern at United's Carrington training complex as he started a postgraduate degree at the Faculty of Human Kinetics at the University of Lisbon.
Mourinho was also a lecturer on the High Performance Coaching course and selected three students, one of whom was Amorim, to shadow him and his coaching staff as part of the program.
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Ruben Amorim was invited to United by Jose Mourinho in 2018
High Performance Coaching
Football family
Through his marriage, Amorim is part of an extended football family. His former Benfica teammate Luis Filipe, who won two league titles and earned three caps for Portugal B, is married to his wife Maria Joao Diogo's sister Ines.
Another notable connection is Amorim's brother-in-law, Antero Henrique, the former PSG sporting director. Henrique, married to Daniela Diogo, oversaw Neymar's record-breaking transfer from Barcelona to PSG in 2017.
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