Ruben Amorim was sacked by Manchester United after a sensational rant to the press but it appears that director of football Jason Wilcox had a considerable part to play in his exit
Manchester United chief Jason Wilcox nudged Ruben Amorim towards the exit door by comparing his own job to the role of a manager. The Portuguese coach was sacked earlier this month after a disappointing year-and-a-half at the helm.
While results certainly played a part in Amorim’s downfall at Old Trafford, other aspects appeared to contribute to the decision to jettison the former Sporting Lisbon boss. It is suggested that his relationship with director of football Wilcox had soured, with one comment in particular irritating Amorim.
According to The Sun, the former Southampton chief compared his own role to the manager’s position at Old Trafford and suggested that Amorim was merely a coach. It is unclear whether Wilcox told the former United boss directly or he was simply made aware.
But either way, the comment left Amorim furious and he sought to clarify his role in his bizarre outburst following the draw with Leeds. He said: “I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United.
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“And that is clear. I know that my name is not [Thomas] Tuchel, it’s not [Antonio] Conte, it’s not [Jose] Mourinho but I’m the manager of Manchester United.
“And it’s going to be like this for 18 months or when the board decides to change. That was my point. I want to finish with that. I’m not going to quit. I will do my job until another guy is coming here to replace me.
“I just want to say that I’m going to be the manager of this team, not just the coach. I was really clear on that and that is going to finish in 18 months and then everyone is going to move on.
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“That was the deal. That is my job. Not to be a coach. If people cannot handle the Gary Nevilles and the criticisms of everything we need to change the club. I just want to say I came here to be the manager, not to be the coach.
“In 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.”
Wilcox has been at United since April 2024, having joined the club as technical director from Southampton. He was moved up the ranks to director of football last year but has garnered criticism for his role in the way the club has been run since.
United chiefs in the meantime will continue their search for Amorim’s replacement. An interim appointment seems to be the most likely cause of action – Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in talks to claim the role.
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