Manchester United

Manchester United

Premier League • England

Man Utd squad’s true feelings on Ruben Amorim appointment revealed as full agreement edges closer

The feelings of Man Utd's players towards Ruben Amorim have been revealed

The feelings of Man Utd's players towards Ruben Amorim have been revealed

Manchester United are closing in on the appointment of Ruben Amorim as their new manager after the Sporting CP boss agreed terms on the role.

The Red Devils sacked Erik ten Hag on Monday and moved quickly to open talks with the 39-year-old coach on the same day, with his move to Old Trafford now imminent.

The final hurdle to clear is the agreement of a compensation fee with Sporting. Amorim has a release clause of €10m (£8.3m / £10.8m) which will likely have to be paid in full.

Sources have informed TEAMtalk that the Red Devil’s players have reacted extremely positively to the news. Many had good relations with Ten Hag and were sad to see him go, but there was agreement across the board that it was the correct call.

We understand that the squad view Amorim as a modern appointment with forward planning and one that will bring the club in line with some of its biggest rivals.

Negotiations over the compensation fee are now at an advanced stage and Amorim is respectfully waiting to be given the green light to travel to Manchester.

The Sporting squad are now expecting Amorim’s departure and sources say they are ‘devastated’ at the prospect of losing their manager. The respect for Amorim among the Sporting players is huge and some players have even rejected moves away from the Portuguese club to continue under his tutelage. However, they accept the fact he is set to take on one of the biggest jobs in world football.

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Ruben Amorim to Man Utd now imminent

Chelsea and Liverpool have previously sounded out Amorim but he ultimately remained at Sporting, either due to his own decision or the clubs looking in another direction. He has also admitted that he held talks with West Ham in April, before rejecting them.

Amorim is now set to go up against those sides in the Premier League this season as the new manager of Man Utd, where he will be expected to turn the club’s current dismal form around.

As mentioned, the exit fee of around £8m in Amorim’s Sporting contract is being discussed between clubs and this relatively cheap compensation package was attractive to Man Utd, who are trying to get their overall costs down.

Amorim could be in the dugout for Man Utd’s clash against Chelsea at Old Trafford on Sunday, with Ruud van Nistelrooy to take charge for the Red Devil’s Carabao Cup clash against Leicester City on Wednesday.

The Man Utd players are excited to get to work under Amorim, who will hope to get his side competing for European football this season.

They currently sit in 14th place in the table after nine games – their worst-ever start to a Premier League campaign by some distance.

Amorim’s ambitious transfer plans revealed 

As we exclusively revealed on Tuesday morning, Amorim has already informed the Man Utd board of three Sporting players he would like to bring with him to Old Trafford.

The Red Devil’s chiefs have told Amorim that they expect him to improve the players they already have, particularly new signings Joshua Zirkzee and Manuel Ugarte, who he knows well.

But Amorim also has his eyes on potential new additions and we understand that he would like to sign Sporting trio Goncalo Inacio, Marcus Edwards and Pedro Goncalves.

Inacio, 23, is considered to be one of the best young centre-backs in Europe and as previously reported, Liverpool also hold a concrete interest in him. He has a release clause of €60m (£51m / $64.8m) in his contract, which Sporting will demand in full.

Edwards, on the other hand, could be signed as a replacement for mega-money flop Antony, who looks likely to be loaned out or sold by Man Utd in January.

Goncalves will be the most difficult addition of the three, as Sporting view him as a vital player and will demand a big fee for his services.

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IN FOCUS: Amorim’s 10 most expensive Sporting signings

1 Manuel Ugarte 2 Viktor Gyokeres 3 Morten Hjulmand 4 Conrad Harder 5 Paulinho 6 Zeno Debast 7 Maxi Araujo 8 Pedro Goncalves 9 Ruben Vinagre 10 Jerry St Juste