RUBEN AMORIM accepts he is a nightmare for the press officers who sit next to him at each media conference.
They often want him to stop talking but here is a man who does not believe that silence is golden.
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Ruben Amorim was refreshingly honest in his press conference on Friday nightCredit: EPA
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He revealed he wanted to stay at Sporting Lisbon until the end of the seasonCredit: EPA
This is why he will be enormously entertaining once he gets his feet under the table at Old Trafford.
Although Amorim has never been one to criticise referees, you still get the feeling the Portuguese will talk himself into trouble over other issues once he is properly settled in English football.
Admittedly, in his first press conference since being confirmed as United manager — after the outgoing Sporting Lisbon boss oversaw a 5-1 win over Estrela Amadora on Friday — he refused to speak about his new employers in Manchester.
He also apologised to Sporting’s media man, sitting to his right, for ignoring the club’s pleas during the week for him to not to talk to the media about the speculation with United.
Amorim, 39, has agreed a £6.5million-a-year deal at United but — remarkably — has claimed he turned down THREE TIMES that amount from another club who met his £8.3m buy-out clause.
He spoke to West Ham and Liverpool in the summer but they did not make a firm offer.
While his claim of being offered nearly £20m a season surprised even the most well-briefed Sporting journalists, the feeling is that this club could have been Chelsea, who spoke to Amorim in 2023.
But £20m a year would have been a huge amount, even by their money-is-no-object standards.
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Watch as Sporting CP’s fans jeer at new Manchester United Manager Rúben Amorim
During his 30-minute press conference, Amorim seemed more serious compared to his previous media appearances during the week.
You can imagine what he might look like after a season in Manchester if things do not go to plan.
Amorim insisted that he was only ever interested in United — although he was bound to say that.
He then revealed he wanted to remain in Lisbon and move to the Premier League at the end of this season.
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United said it had to be now and you could hardly blame them.
Amorim also revealed he told Sporting at the start of the season that this would be his last year at the club.
But despite the approach of United after the sacking of Erik ten Hag, Amorim conceded it was still not a straightforward decision to leave Sporting and he agonised over taking the plunge.
He said: “United came along, paid the clause, above the clause, and the chairman defended his interests.
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“The only request I made to United was that it would be at the end of the season and they told me that wasn’t possible, that it was now or never.
“I had three days to decide on something that would completely change my life. It’s not the first time that I’ve had my clause paid by another club.
“Nor is it the second. It’s very hard for me to leave.
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“The club knew that if I rejected it, I wouldn’t have it in six months.
“And I knew that in six months I would know that I wouldn’t be at Sporting. The only club that I wanted, and that moved me, was United.
“It got to a point where I had to decide — and I did. Now I’m going home much more relaxed.
“I would earn three times more with the last club that offered to pay my clause. I gave everything I had for the club.
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“I changed my mind several times. My concern is not to harm the Sporting team. And we’ll see later. I’ll have that concern when I’m at United.”
After the midweek Champions League clash against City, Amorim will head to his former club Braga next Sunday when he will wave goodbye to Portuguese football for now.
He heads to Manchester a week tomorrow and that will be the day Sporting plan to name their next manager, which is expected to be B team boss Joao Pereira.
While there remains some anger at the timing of Amorim’s departure, many Sporting fans have taken the news well.
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And the majority gave him a good reception before and after Friday’s 5-1 Primeira Liga win.
And he has certainly left Sporting in a good place. Having already won the title twice, they are top with a 100 per cent record from ten games. They are also unbeaten in the Champions League after three games and are in eighth spot.
Amorim added: “I’m leaving here today feeling much more relieved. I was a little surprised by the fans’ reaction.
“But I’m more relieved that everything is clearer now. My smile is always there but it’s a difficult time.”
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Ruben Amorim is ‘Mourinho 2.0’ who turned Sporting from ‘walking dead’ into Portuguese champs… he can revive Man Utd
WHEN Ruben Amorim took charge of Sporting Lisbon in March 2020, one club official compared their situation to the “walking dead”, writes Jordan Davies.
Optimism and hope was at an all-time low.
But the Amorim-effect was almost instantaneous, guiding the Portuguese sleeping giants to their first league title for 19 years in 2020/21, losing just once and only conceding 20 goals.
Since then, Sporting have lifted another league title in 2023/24 – as well as two League Cups – and currently sit top with nine wins from nine this term.
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He may be young, but Amorim already has an eye for rebuilding and revitalising fallen super powers with his infectious charisma and intense tactical philosophy that hardly ever wavers.
The “walking dead” at Manchester United must be praying for a similar sort of revival.
And they may just get it from one of the most talented young coaches on the continent – a man accustomed to breathing new life back into crumbling institutions such as Old Trafford.
Amorim has spent the last decade dreaming of one day gracing England’s Premier League, such was his admiration for an ex-United boss in Jose Mourinho growing up.
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Often nicknamed ‘Mourinho 2.0’, Amorim spent a week with his coaching idol in an internship capacity at United’s Carrington training base in 2018, going on to cite him as his “reference point”.
United should not be expecting a mini-Mourinho, as Amorim said himself: “Mourinho is one of a kind. There won’t be another Mourinho. Mourinho is unique.”
And yet, you cannot help but compare the two.
For all the mismanagement in the Old Trafford hot seats over the years, this would be a real get – finally a slap in the face United’s Prem rivals have no answer for.
MANCHESTER UNITED have added academy starlet Jayce Fitzgerald to their Europa League squad.
The Red Devils are set to welcome Greek side PAOK to Old Trafford this evening.
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Jayce Fitzgerald has been added to Man Utd’s B ListCredit: Getty
On September 4, United were required to submit their 25-man “List A” Europa League squad to Uefa.
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Throughout the group stage, however, further players can be be made eligible if they meet certain criteria.
Uefa rules state: “A player may be registered on List B if he is born on or after 1 January 2003 and has, since his 15th birthday, been eligible to play for the club concerned for any uninterrupted period of two years.
“Or a total of three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan period to a club from the same association for a period not longer than one year.”
Clubs have until midnight prior to matchday to add players to List B.
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With Fitzgerald, 17, fitting the bill, he has been added to United’s squad and will be eligible to feature this evening.
The academy starlet has been introduced to the Red Devils’ first team set-up since Ruud van Nistelrooy took caretaker charge.
He was an unused substitute as United beat Leicester 5-2 in the Carabao Cup, in what was Van Nistelrooy’s first game.
Aston Martin has got to the bottom of its troubled Brazilian Grand Prix that left Lance Stroll out on the formation lap and Fernando Alonso battling extreme bouncing.
The Silverstone-based team endured a hugely challenging race afternoon at Interlagos as Stroll spun into the wall on the formation lap after his rears unexpectedly locked, before he managed to beach himself in the gravel.
Then Alonso struggled throughout with similar rear locking issues plus excessive porpoising that left him struggling with back pain at the end, but he was determined to push on and see the chequered flag.
Speaking on the team radio at the time, Alonso, who finished 14th, admitted that something unusual was happening. “This bouncing is not normal,” he said.
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With no immediate explanation for what happened on both cars, Aston Martin has spent some time since returning to its factory trying to get a better comprehension of the factors at play.
It now suspects that the problems on both cars were triggered by a super nervous rear-end characteristic that had been introduced as a result of car changes made following the qualifying crashes the team suffered on Sunday morning.
Both Stroll and Alonso had hit the barriers in the wet qualifying session, damaging the Suzuka-concept specification floors the team had intended to run for the Interlagos event.
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin AMR24, crashes out
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Images
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With no spares of that specification available, Aston Martin had to revert to a previous floor version – which was the one it first introduced at the Hungarian GP.
Normally teams cannot change specs between qualifying and the race, as that is a breach of parc ferme regulations and mandates a pitlane start.
However, things are different on a sprint race weekend when allowances are made if there is a shortage of spare parts.
Article 40.4 says at sprint weekends teams can change specification if they can “demonstrate there is a shortage of parts, and provided that the replacement part is of a specification that has been previously used in a qualifying session or a race”.
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It was this rule that Mercedes used at the United States GP to allow George Russell to go back to an older specification of floor following his qualifying crash.
The complication for Aston Martin, however, was that the change of floor had to be made without it being able to alter the mechanical set-up around it – as suspension settings are totally fixed in parc ferme.
Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin AMR24
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Images
So on a weekend where teams were battling the problems of excessive bumps on the Interlagos track, plus tricky weather conditions, the end result was a car whose aero platform and mechanical settings did not match up.
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Speaking about what Aston Martin has found out since Brazil, team principal Mike Krack thinks a combination of elements came together to leave both its drivers with a car that was ultra nervous.
“It was clear that both drivers were battling a car that was incredibly difficult to drive during Sunday’s race,” he said. “Our post-weekend analysis has highlighted several factors that explain this.
“Following both car’s accidents in qualifying, we had to replace a lot of components with a different specification due to availabilities at the end of a triple-header. This is allowed by the Sprint Event regulations, and you declare your shortages and replacement options to the FIA before the event.
“[But] you aren’t allowed to change the mechanical set-up of the cars. This meant we could neither check nor adjust the set-up of the cars, which negatively affected aerodynamic behaviour and performance.
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“Add in treacherous wet conditions, along with an incredibly bumpy track, and you begin to understand that both drivers had the odds stacked against them.
“Both cars were highly susceptible to wheel-locking, and we can see in the data that this is what caused the issues for both Lance and Fernando.”
Read Also:
Aston Martin has been experimenting with its floor choices in recent races, with an upgrade it delivered for Austin not delivering the step forward hoped for.
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It reverted to the Suzuka spec from Mexico, and may commit to the Budapest version for the next high-speed races in Las Vegas and Qatar.
England’s Tommy Fleetwood shot a 10-under-par 62 to equal the course record and lead by one shot after the opening round of the Abu Dhabi Championship.
Dane Thorbjorn Olesen and American Johannes Veerman share second place, with English trio Tyrrell Hatton, Paul Waring and Laurie Canter and Italian Francesco Laporta one stroke further back.
Scotland’s Bob MacIntyre went round in seven under, England’s Alex Fitzpatrick and Matthew Jordan six under and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy five under.
Fleetwood said: “When you shoot a 62, obviously everything is going to have gone very, very well.”
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McIlroy needs to finish in the top two at Yas Links to win a sixth Race to Dubai title, before the final event of the European Tour season at the World Tour Championship in Dubai next week.
McIlroy, who has spent three weeks in a studio hitting balls at a screen with a modified swing, said his performance on day one of the tournament “felt OK”.
“I probably wasn’t as imaginative out there – I was hitting very straight shots.”
ONE Championship creates more depth in its big January event by adding the return of champion Fabricio Andrade.
At ONE 170 on Jan. 24 at Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand, Andrade (9-2) will defend his bantamweight (145 pounds) title for the first time against a familiar opponent, Won Il Kwon. The promotion directly confirmed the news of the matchup with MMA Junkie.
The event is an Asian primetime card starting at 7:30 a.m. ET.
Andrade achieved his crowning moment by defeating John Lineker at ONE on Prime Video 7 in February 2023. Lineker’s corner stopped the fight after the conclusion of Round 4 due to damage to their fighter’s eye.
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Since his big moment, Andrade, 27, has only appeared once in a kickboxing bout against Jonathan Haggerty. It was an attempt to become a two-sport champion in ONE, but things did not go his way as he was stopped in the second round. Now, he’s geared up for his return to MMA competition and will look to defend his title for the first time against Kwon (14-4), who he previously faced and finished.
The first meeting took place at ONE Championship 158 in June 2022. Andrade finished the fight with a liver kick in the first round, which led to back-to-back appearances against Lineker.
Kwon has not lost since. The 29-year-old South Korean fighter has gone on a tear, finishing three consecutive opponents. His most recent appearance was a second-round ground and pounding of Shinechagtga Zoltsetseg in January, which has set up his title opportunity.
With the addition, the ONE 170 lineup includes:
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Fabricio Andrade vs. Won Il Kwon – for bantamweight title
Tawanchai PK Saenchai vs. Superbon Banchamek – for muay Thai lightweight title
Superlek Kiatmoo9 vs. Nico Carrillo – for muay Thai featherweight title
Saeksan Or Kwanmuang vs. Soe Lin Oo
Suriyanlek Por Yenying vs. Thant Zin
Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.
In the final part of his prize package, 2023 Autosport Young Driver of the Year Award Winner and Rodin F3 driver Joseph Loake heads to Silverstone to test the Aston Martin AMR22 F1 Car.
Narrated and presented by Motorsport Engineer Blake Hinsey, we gets a behind-the-scenes look at how Aston Martin conducts a track test for a new driver, as well as insight from Joseph and his family on the emotional journey climbing the ladder of junior motorsport, and the thrill of driving an F1 car for the first time.
Week 10 of the 2024 NFL season is almost here! But before FOX Sports lead NFL analyst Tom Brady heads back to Tampa Bay for a massive NFC battle between the Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers, it’s time for the GOAT to unveil his latest power rankings! A surprising team enters Brady’s list for the first time, while one NFC squad separates itself from the pack after a huge Week 9 win.
Check out his latest Top 5 and full analysis here:
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Tom Brady’s Week 9 Power Rankings | DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
Here’s who the GOAT has ranked as his Top 5 teams entering a massive Week 10!
Brady’s thoughts: “Coming in at No. 5 this week and making their debut in my power rankings, the Washington Commanders. Led by rookie QB Jayden Daniels — he doesn’t look like a rookie to me — Washington’s won three straight and seven of their last eight. That’s insane.
“Hats off to Coach [Dan] Quinn. You’ve done an incredible job this year as head coach. The team, they’ve had more wins this year than they did last year, and that’s their best start in almost 30 years. They’ll try to stay undefeated at home this season when the Steelers make the trip to D.C. this week.”
Wide receiver Terry McLaurin and quarterback Jayden Daniels have formed a potent duo for the Commanders in Daniels’ first NFL season. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Brady’s thoughts: “Hard to believe they’re No. 4 and not higher. There’s some other good teams up there. They had a tough loss to the Browns, but they bounced back and got a huge win over Denver. Lamar was ridiculous, a perfect QB rating against a top-three defense.
“Derrick Henry — again unstoppable. He’s already over 1,000 yards halfway through the season. The Ravens also have the league’s No. 1 ranked run defense. Man, that’s just a tough football team. But they’ve got a huge test on Thursday against [Joe] Burrow and the Bengals.”
The combination of Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson in Baltimore’s backfield is everything Ravens fans had hoped for when Henry arrived in the offseason. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
Brady’s thoughts: “They pulled out a wild win against the Dolphins in the fourth quarter. Tyler Bass hit a 61-yarder for the win. It wasn’t the Bills’ cleanest game of the year, but Josh Allen came up clutch with three touchdowns in the second half. That’s four straight for Buffalo. But don’t overlook the Colts this week with the Chiefs looming in Week 11.”
Josh Allen led the Bills to a comeback victory over the Dolphins to keep Buffalo in the driver’s seat in the AFC East. (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images)
Brady’s thoughts: “There were plenty of doubters as they played their first outdoor game of the year. But that rainstorm at Lambeau, it didn’t slow them down. Jared Goff is in the zone. He’s completing an NFL record 83% of his passes the last six weeks. David Montgomery, Jahmyr Gibbs — they killed it on the ground with 138 combined rush yards. And I’ve got to show a lot of love to Aaron Glenn. That Lions D is allowing 19 points per game since losing Aidan Hutchinson.
“Detroit looks to win its seventh straight game this week against C.J. Stroud and the Texans in Houston. That’s a great matchup.”
A rainy day in Green Bay was no match for Jared Goff and the juggernaut Lions on Sunday. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Brady’s thoughts: “If you’re undefeated, you better believe you’re going to stay at the top of my power rankings. At No. 1, the Kansas City Chiefs. They continue to find ways to win close games. They’ve got that championship DNA. Patrick Mahomes had three touchdowns, didn’t turn the ball over, and they had a new addition. DeAndre Hopkins is already looking like a great fit in this offense. He had two touchdowns.
“Looking all the way back to last year, that’s 14 straight wins for the Chiefs. Sean Payton, you’ve got a challenge against them this Sunday when it’s Broncos-Chiefs. Let’s see if the Chiefs can stay undefeated.
Patrick Mahomes and the still-undefeated Chiefs continue to loom large over the rest of the NFL. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)
“There’s a great set of games coming up this weekend. Let’s see who tops the power rankings next week.”
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