Ruben Amorim’s ex-assistant hints at what went wrong at Manchester United - 'Our ideas weren’t totally implemented'

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Ruben Amorim's former Manchester United assistant coach Adelio Candido says their "ideas weren’t totally implemented" during their tumultuous time at the club. Amorim was sacked in January after just 14 months in charge at Old Trafford. The Portuguese, succeeded by Michael Carrick, left with a win rate of 31.9%, the lowest win ratio of any permanent United manager in the Premier League.

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Adelio Candido, an assistant coach under Ruben Amorim at Manchester United, said the ideas they were trying to put across "weren’t totally implemented" during their time at the club.

Amorim was sacked in January after just 14 months in charge at Old Trafford, ending a tumultuous time in Manchester.

And Candido, who also worked with Amorim at Braga and Sporting CP, said he believes more could have been done to take Amorim’s ideas on board.

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"Experience is always experience," Candido told Portuguese publication, A Bola. "Whether the end result is good or bad, we always end up learning. I really liked Manchester as a city, the way the fans live and breathe football, they were looking at the project rather than short-term results.

"What I liked less, without a doubt, was the feeling that our ideas weren’t totally implemented."

Amorim took charge of United in 47 Premier League games, winning just 15 at a rate of 31.9%. That is the lowest win ratio of any permanent United manager in the Premier League, per Opta.

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A breakdown in the relationship between Amorim and director of football Jason Wilcox was said to be a factor in the Portuguese manager’s sacking earlier this year.

Following a draw with Leeds United in what was Amorim’s final match in charge, he said he may "move on" when his contract, which had 18 months left to run, ended.

"I came here to be the manager of Manchester United – not to be the coach of Manchester United," Amorim said. "That is clear. I know my name is not [Thomas] Tuchel, [Jose] Mourinho or [Antonio] Conte, but I’m the manager.

"It’s going to be like this for 18 months, or until the board decide to change. I’m not going to quit, I will do my job until another guy is coming here to replace me."

Amorim joined United in November 2024 after the club paid a reported £9 million to hire him from Sporting. With Sporting, he won the Primeira Liga title twice, in 2021 and in 2024, while also winning the Taca da Liga on two occasions.

In his first season with United, Amorim oversaw their lowest Premier League finish, ending last season in 15th place with just 42 points. United also lost the UEFA Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur in Bilbao, meaning the club failed to secure European football for the first time since 2014.

When Amorim was sacked, United were in sixth position, but he had faced criticism for his tactical inflexibility during his time at the club, preferring a 3-4-3 set-up that brought him success at Sporting - but little of it at Old Trafford.

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Amorim’s run of poor results has been highlighted by the success of his replacement, Michael Carrick, who has enjoyed an unbeaten start to life as manager.

Candido was a key member of Amorim’s youthful backroom staff, and he believes that their relative inexperience at the top level was a positive.

"I think the fact we were so young helped us deal with the pressure - it was generally a positive working environment," he said.

"With that level of pressure, it’s normal that people get annoyed more easily in a coaching staff, which was not the case with us."

Amorim is still without a job, but recent reports have linked the 41-year-old with the open managerial vacancy at Vasco da Gama in Brazil.

Although their time in Manchester ended prematurely, the overall impact of that time has yet to be seen, according to Candido.

"Only the future will tell whether the exit was good or bad for our careers," he said.

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