‘If Sporting beat Man City, I’ll be hailed as the next Sir Alex Ferguson’

New Manchester United boss Ruben Amorin has joked that he will be hailed as the next Sir Alex Ferguson if his Sporting CP side beat Manchester City on Tuesday.

Amorim will officially begin his reign as United boss on November 11, meaning he will oversee Sporting’s home tie against City in the Champions League as well as their trip to Braga on Sunday before taking the reigns at Old Trafford.

The 39-year-old knows his imminent move means tomorrow’s clash will have increased eyes watching on from Manchester, but he insisted the result should have little impact on how he performs in his new role.

He said: “The focus is on winning the game for Sporting, after that, the inferences that people will draw from this game are not important to me because they could be misleading.

“If the result is negative, expectations will drop; if we win they will think that the new Alex Ferguson has arrived!

“What interests me is to win, a good farewell in Alvalade, win in Braga and start a new adventure in Manchester.

“What I want is to leave the fans and my players happy for what is to come in the new season.”

Amorim: I can further my career at United

Amorim has faced backlash from supporters in his current club, having previously said he was happy in the Portuguese capital after guiding them to two league titles during his four-year spell in charge.

On whether there was any part of him that considered staying at Sporting, he admitted: “It crosses my mind, [but] that’s where I want to continue my career.

“I’ve decided on the club I want, there’s no room for indecision.”

Asked whether they are prepared for his departure, Amorim said: “Yes. The captain said they didn’t need the coach! They are very mature, they understand the game well.

“It will be a change, but the team is prepared and has the maturity to move forward.”

“I wanted Manchester United so that’s what I did” 💬

Ruben Amorim speaks on the thought process behind his decision to become Manchester United’s head coach 🔴 pic.twitter.com/2VN0tQxY0a

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) November 4, 2024

Amorim plays down West Ham talks

Amorim had been regularly linked with a move England prior to agreeing to succeed Erik ten Hag at United, having reportedly flown in for talks to take over at West Ham after David Moyes’ departure.

But the new Red Devils boss insisted he was never close to taking up the London Stadium hotseat.

He added: “Let’s get back to the same subject. I went to England, I didn’t go to negotiate, I went to meet the owner, I had made my decision.

“I stayed because I spoke to the president and he convinced me to stay for another year. If you think I already wanted to leave last year, there’s nothing I can do about it.

“I accepted this invitation and I’ve already explained why. Now it’s time to think about tomorrow’s game, then we’ll have time to talk about it.”