TNT Sports
Manchester United sack Head Coach Ruben Amorim after 14 months in charge at Old Trafford
By
Updated 05/01/2026 at 13:02 GMT
React to this story
Ruben Amorim has been sacked as manager of Manchester United, just over a year after taking charge at Old Trafford in November 2024. The Portuguese has endured a difficult first half of the 2025/26 campaign after guiding United to their worst-ever Premier League finish last season. The club are now searching for their seventh permanent manager since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013.
Defiant Amorim comes out fighting: 'I am the manager, not the coach'
Video credit: SNTV
Manchester United have sacked manager Ruben Amorim after the Portuguese coach spent just 14 months in charge at Old Trafford.
Amorim's final game was a 1-1 draw with Leeds United on Sunday that left the club sixth in the Premier League after 20 matches.
United have confirmed that Darren Fletcher will take charge of the team for their Premier League match at Burnley on Wednesday.
According to reports, the club is expected to appoint a caretaker manager until the end of the current campaign before a full-time successor to Amorim in the summer.
A statement from the club released on Monday morning said: "With Manchester United sitting sixth in the Premier League, the club’s leadership has reluctantly made the decision that it is the right time to make a change.
"This will give the team the best opportunity of the highest possible Premier League finish.
"The club would like to thank Ruben for his contribution to the club and wishes him well for the future."
It is believed that there was a breakdown behind the scenes between Amorim and Director of Football Jason Wilcox. Amorim made incendiary comments following the Leeds result on Sunday, claiming he may "move on" after his contract finished in 18 months.
"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."
When asked about transfer policy, Amorim said: "Every department, the scouting department, the sporting director, needs to do their job. I will do mine for 18 months and then we move on."
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/01/04/image-3492bb60-9046-4281-adc8-c7ce58c61f12-85-2560-1440.jpeg)
Highlights: Cunha rescues point for Man Utd in gritty encounter at Leeds
Video credit: TNT Sports
Amorim joined United in November 2024 after the club paid around ÂŁ9 million to hire him from Sporting, with his first game a 1-1 draw at Ipswich.
With Sporting, he won the Primeira Liga title twice in 2021 and in 2024, while also winning the Taca da Liga on two occasions.
The Portuguese however oversaw United’s lowest Premier League finish, ending last season in 15th place with just 42 points.
United also lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur in Bilbao, meaning the club failed to secure European football for the first time since 2014.
After a huge summer spend that included the signings of Benjamin Sesko, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, Amorim has failed to spark the revival the club has needed.
/origin-imgresizer.tntsports.io/2026/01/05/image-b2ec2622-12cc-4f13-a924-954ab478e404.jpeg)
Ruben Amorim at Elland Road on Sunday for what was his final game in charge of Manchester United
Image credit: Getty Images
United began this season in poor fashion too, with just seven points from their first six league matches.
An embarrassing Carabao Cup exit at the hands of League Two side Grimsby Town in August compounded matters.
But to some extent, United have staged a recovery and are currently in sixth place, three points behind fourth-placed Liverpool.
Amorim was routinely criticised 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.
A 1-0 win over Newcastle United on December 26 saw Amorim work with a 4-2-3-1, before he reverted to the 3-4-3 and drew 1-1 with rock-bottom Wolverhampton Wanderers four days later.
| Played | W | W% | |
| Ruben Amorim | 47 | 15 | 31.9% |
| Ralf Rangnick* | 24 | 10 | 41.7% |
| David Moyes | 34 | 17 | 50.0% |
| Louis van Gaal | 76 | 39 | 51.3% |
| Ole Gunnar Solskjær | 109 | 56 | 51.4% |
| Erik ten Hag | 85 | 44 | 51.8% |
| José Mourinho | 93 | 50 | 53.8% |
| Alex Ferguson | 810 | 528 | 65.2% |
| Amorim had the lowest win ratio of any permanent Manchester United manager in the Premier League (Opta) |
*Ralf Rangnick was only employed as an interim manager
United are now searching for a seventh full-time manager since Sir Alex Ferguson departed in 2013 to close his legendary 26-and-a-half-year tenure at the club.
David Moyes, Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Erik ten Hag and now Amorim have taken charge of the club over what has been a generally troubled 13 years.
United have won two FA Cups in that time, in 2016 and 2024, along with two League Cups and the Europa League in 2017.
But compared to the riches under Ferguson - which included 13 Premier League titles and two UEFA Champions League successes- it has been slim pickings.
Stream the Premier League, Men's and Women's FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League and more on TNT Sports and discovery+
Related Topics
Advertisement
Advertisement