LEEDS, England — Manchester United’s Ruben Amorim has taken possession of the Enzo Maresca playbook, read it from cover to cover and picked out the most explosive elements by issuing a direct challenge to his bosses.
And whether by accident or design, Amorim has increased his chances of suffering the same fate as the former Chelsea coach, whose 18-month stint in charge of the FIFA Club World Cup champions came to an end on New Year’s Day following one public outburst too many against the Stamford Bridge hierarchy.
Maresca, who guided Chelsea to UEFA Champions League qualification and UEFA Conference League success last season before winning the Club World Cup in July, stopped short of identifying those with whom he had frustrations at the club when talking about suffering the “worst 48 hours since I joined the club because many people didn’t support us” on Dec. 14.
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And while Maresca’s issues with Chelsea’s complex hierarchy of two owners, five sporting directors and an autonomous medical team were known, the former Leicester City coach made sure not to publicly point the finger.
But in his explosive postmatch news conference after the team’s 1-1 draw at Leeds United on Sunday, Amorim called for United director of football Jason Wilcox and their scouting team to “do their jobs” at the same time as demanding to be allowed to be the “manager, not the coach” of the team.
Amorim was actually announced as “head coach” by United when he arrived at Old Trafford from Sporting CP in November 2024, so his call for the title of “manager” was a power play on its own. But by singling out those responsible for player recruitment, Amorim has sparked an internal battle for control.
There is no other way to interpret his comments, and Amorim will know that.
The 40-year-old wants the United hierarchy of Wilcox, CEO Omar Berrada and minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe to sanction new arrivals for his beleaguered squad this month to help boost the team’s chances of securing qualification for the Champions League next season.
But after missing out on Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, who is expected to complete a £65 million transfer to Manchester City this week, Amorim said on Friday that there would be no further attempts to sign new players.
The money was there to bring in Semenyo, but not for any other possible signings, which is a reality that Amorim appears unable to accept. And after initially voicing his frustrations at his prematch news conference Friday, he doubled down when asked to clarify his comments Sunday.
It is clearly an issue that is rankling him deeply, but it is the language used by Amorim that points to his growing dissatisfaction at Old Trafford.
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“I noticed that you [the media] receive selective information about everything,” he said when asked about his Friday comments.
By suggesting that the reporters covering United are receiving “selective information,” Amorim seems to believe that there is a briefing campaign to counter his messages to the media — not a healthy place for any head coach to be in at a club.
And by saying that he is the “manager, not the coach” (while reeling off examples of peers like Thomas Tuchel, Antonio Conte and Jose Mourinho), Amorim is calling for the kind of control that his actual job title does not give him.
It was a similar scenario at Chelsea with Maresca, both in terms of control over the opinion of the medical team and also in his inability to influence the recruitment department to sign the more experienced players he believed the team needed to reach the next level.
Amorim is in the same place right now.
After finishing 16th last season, Amorim has arguably exceeded expectations in this campaign to date by putting United in contention for a Champions League spot. And with the top four within their grasp — and a top-five spot may even be enough for a European spot if England secures an additional place through the UEFA coefficient table — Amorim wants the club to sign a midfielder and wing back to make the difference as the games come thick and fast in the new year.
Amorim wants United to speculate to accumulate, but the club’s hierarchy, mindful of financial restrictions and the prospect of striking better deals in the summer, are reluctant to make additions.
That could be interpreted in two ways. The first is that United simply want to wait until the end of the season and avoid dealing in a market with limited options. But the second scenario is that Wilcox, Berrada and Ratcliffe are losing faith in Amorim and don’t want to risk signing players who may not suit a possible successor.
If Amorim believes reporters are being given “selective” information, he may also believe that second scenario, so he is now calling out his bosses in what feels like a “back me or sack me” ultimatum.
Maresca tried to play that card and lost spectacularly.
Amorim is now facing the same fate, not only because he has gone public by questioning his bosses, but because results are beginning to tail off, with United securing just one win in their past five league games.
For any manager or head coach, a combination of poor results and tension with the club hierarchy is a dangerous cocktail. Amorim has put himself in grave jeopardy at United by speaking out so candidly.
