
Manchester United
Premier League • England
Amorim ‘stunned’ at what he’s witnessed in Man Utd training, as sobering reality sinks in

Man Utd manager Ruben Amorim
A concerning report has claimed new Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim ‘could not believe’ what he’s seen in his first week of training, with the Portuguese taken aback by the scale of the task he’s inherited.
Amorim arrived at Old Trafford on the back of guiding former club Sporting CP to two Primeira Liga titles in four years. Sporting are considered one of Portugal’s ‘big three’ – along with FC Porto and Benfica – though Amorim’s achievements should not be taken lightly given Sporting has not lifted a league title since 2002 prior to his arrival.
Amorim faces a similar situation at Man Utd, with the Portuguese tasked with putting an under-performing giant of the game back at the summit of their country.
But according to a fresh update from The Sun, Amorim has experienced a rude awakening in his first few training sessions at Carrington.
It’s claimed Amorim ‘could not believe’ what he witnessed in sessions, with the 39-year-old staggered at the United squad’s ‘lack of speed and intensity.’
As such, The Sun claimed Amorim was left ‘stunned’ upon realising the task of turning United’s ship around will be more difficult than he anticipated.
The report concluded: ‘During the first sessions this week, Amorim was constantly having to tell the players to pick up the pace – and this has continued through the week.’
READ MORE: Ruben Amorim in-tray: Seven key issues for new Man Utd head coach to address
Amorim’s biggest squad issue picked out by Jamie Carragher
Amorim is expected to deploy the 3-4-3 formation that worked wonders at Sporting. That system features the specialised positions of wing-backs, though pundit Jamie Carragher doesn’t see natural fits within United’s current squad.
When speaking on The Overlap US., Gary Neville admitted he was “stunned” former boss Erik ten Hag never switched to a back three in an attempt to solve the club’s defensive woes on his watch.
That prompted Carragher to interject, with the Liverpool legend stating: “If Erik ten Hag would have gone to three at the back in his third season at Manchester United, he’d have gone to three at the back to sort of cobble along.
“Once you’re in year three as a manager of a top club, that’s something you might do when you first come in to get you through.
“It wasn’t about getting them through to a certain stage in year three when he’d spent £600m. He had built a squad to play a back four.
“I don’t think he could have gone to a back three because I think that would have basically been saying, ‘This is over!’ and he had to keep going with his idea and his plan.
“I don’t think this squad is suited to three at the back, Gary. You’re saying they’re suited to it because they’ve got a lot of centre-backs but who are the wing-backs?”
Latest Man Utd news – New wing-backs wanted
In other news, BILD’s Christian Falk reported Man Utd are ready to outbid both Real Madrid and Bayern Munich in the contract stakes for Alphonso Davies.
The Canadian left-footer is out of contract at season’s end and will be free to sign a pre-contract agreement with overseas sides come January 1.
TEAMtalk’s understanding of the situation is United’s interest in Davies is concrete, though the club won’t break the bank and are content to simply make a ‘competitive’ offer.
An alternative to Davies if United miss out is Milos Kerkez of Bournemouth. Liverpool have sought permission from The Cherries to speak to Kerkez, though Man Utd have followed suit by making an ‘enquiry’ into the Hungarian’s signing.
Elsewhere, multiple reports in Spain are talking up the chances of Man Utd launching a bid for Tottenham’s Pedro Porro.
The defender would be an ideal fit for the right wing-back role and was previously managed by Amorim at Sporting.
Real Madrid – who are prioritising Trent Alexander-Arnold anyway – have all but ended their interest in Porro after learning of Tottenham’s €70m valuation. Whether that’s enough to dissuade Amorim and Man Utd too, only time will tell.