Ruben Amorim’s swift dismissal at Manchester United may have come as a surprise following the weekend draw with Leeds United, although the writing had been on the wall for almost a year for the Portuguese coach.
The 40-year-old had swept all before him at Sporting CP, yet ran into almost immediate difficulties at Old Trafford following his appointment 14 months ago, with reports even claiming he was ready to walk away as early as January 2025.
A resignation may not have come, but there is a sense that he eventually talked himself out of a job in his final days, while his stubborn refusal to move away from a 3-4-2-1 setup appeared the ultimate undoing.
In a way, Amorim came as close as any post-Sir Alex Ferguson manager to looking the right fit with his charm and honesty, although nor has the club ever looked further away from truly competing again, after last season’s 15th place Premier League finish.
It said it all that there was no outpouring of fury or frustration when the announcement was made, with INEOS ready to move on from this forgettable stint by naming his successor.
Senior Man Utd players choose preferred Amorim replacement
While the Red Devils currently reside in sixth place and firmly in the Champions League race, recent evidence has highlighted the difficulties of taking the job mid-season, with both Amorim and Ralf Rangnick enduring particularly dismal spells.
That is why a permanent replacement is likely to have to wait until the summer, with Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner deemed to be the leading candidate by all accounts.
The Austrian coach – who claimed the FA Cup last season for the first time in Palace’s history – is a fine manager, but is he really worth waiting for?
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A short-term pick could perhaps provide a longer-term solution, with talkSPORT highlighting that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the frontrunner for the caretaker post, with advanced talks already held with the INEOS regime.
The Norwegian is keen on making a return to the Theatre of Dreams, and hopes that a fruitful interim spell could lead to securing the post on a full-time basis, even with the likes of Glasner set to be preferred.
The move to bring the treble winner back to the club, even just on a short-term basis, has been given the backing of senior United figures, such as Harry Maguire and captain Bruno Fernandes.
Why Solskjaer would be a better fit than Glasner
There may have been those asking what year it was when the news initially broke of Solskjaer’s interest in the vacancy, with the baby-faced assassin having replaced Jose Mourinho in December 2018, prior to embarking on a stunning interim stint.
By March 2019, following that night in Paris, the Scandinavian coach was snapped up permanently, subsequently leading the club to respectable second and third-place finishes in his two full seasons at the helm.
Lauded as “incredible” by Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola, Solskjaer may have fallen short in the hunt for silverware, but he set the club firmly on the right course, having perhaps only been derailed by the last-gasp homecoming of Cristiano Ronaldo in the summer of 2021.
So many may scorn this ‘jobs for the boys’ policy, yet United is a special beast, while after a decade or so of exploring an array of different options in the managerial market, Solskjaer arguably remains the best of the lot.
And so, there is no reason why this interim spell can’t move into permanent territory, with the 52-year-old likely to prove a better fit than Glasner for the position.
That may be bold to say, although a glaring issue is the Palace man’s current tactical set-up, mirroring Amorim in deploying a 3-4-2-1, both at Selhurst Park and with former employers Eintracht Frankfurt.
Would he really be ready or willing to adapt away from a system that has brought him such success? Maybe he could at least make United a proper outfit with a back three, although it appears to be at odds with the club’s history and ‘DNA’.
Solskjaer’s interim spell
Stat
Record
Days in charge
99
Games
19
Wins
14
Draws
2
Losses
3
Players used
28
Points per game
2.32
Average goals scored
2.11
Average goals conceded
0.89
via Transfermarkt
For all the negativity that surrounded him, Solskjaer was as adaptable as they come, typically utilising a 4-2-3-1, albeit while using a back three if needed, such as in his final win away at Tottenham Hotspur.
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He is no philosophy coach, merely a club legend who’ll do what it takes to win. That’s not to do him a disservice, however, with the aforementioned Maguire labelling that period between 2019 and 2021 as the “best” of his time at United, while hailing his former boss as “tactically excellent”.
A concern for Glasner too would also be his inability to juggle competing across multiple fronts, albeit with a limited squad, with Palace forced into the Conference League play-off round, while having now lost four of their last five league games and failing to win at all since early December.
The step up from a club of that stature to Manchester United is immense – just ask David Moyes – with it seemingly too much of a gamble be waiting around for a figure like Glasner.
Maybe, it’s the safe choice returning to Solskjaer, but after another period of woe for United, why not go back to something that did, largely, work well for the club.
Man Utd open talks with 4-2-3-1 manager who Ronaldo thinks is "class"
The Red Devils could turn to a former player as they seek stability after Ruben Amorim’s departure.
2 BySean Markus Clifford