Another day, another twist in the modern-day saga that is Manchester United.
The Red Devils claimed a 1-1 draw with fierce rivals Leeds United at Elland Road on Sunday, and given their number of first-team absentees and inconsistent season to date, this was not a bad result or performance.
Ruben Amorim seemed to agree afterwards when speaking to TV cameras, but in his press conference afterwards, he sparked speculation about how long he will remain in charge of the club. After strangely taking exception to the idea of being called United's "coach" rather than "manager", he made numerous references to being at United for "18 months" before things would change.
It was an odd thing to get riled up about, not least as he was officially appointed head coach rather than manager, becoming the first man in charge of the men's first team to be given that specific job title. However, it did follow a pre-match media conference in which he hinted at discord behind the scenes at the club, so perhaps it wasn't a huge surprise.
Either way, Amorim managed to turn a reasonably positive afternoon for United into one of uncertainty and confusion.
MORE: Man United lack quality, not spirit: Talking points from draw at Leeds
Is Ruben Amorim leaving? Leeds interview explained
Amorim mentioned "18 months" more than once after the Leeds draw, apparently referring to the length of his contract at United. He also insisted "everyone is going to move on" at the end of that time.
However, Amorim also said "I will not quit", instead saying he would see out those 18 months on his contract unless he is sacked and replaced by someone else.
Amorim himself has previously admitted emotion can get the better of him immediately after a game, and it can therefore be difficult to pick out exactly what he means with his remarks. After the humiliating Carabao Cup exit at League Two Grimsby Town, he said "I think the players spoke really loudly about what they want today," and, when asked to clarify his meaning, replied: "Guys, it's really clear. I just want to apologise to our fans."
A few days later, a much calmer Amorim said: "Sometimes I want to quit, sometimes I want to be here for 20 years."
Often, his mood reflects the consistency of his team's performances, and it appears quite clear that there has been at least some degree of disharmony behind the scenes at the club. In that context, it's maybe not surprising that Amorim has become a little tetchy in front of the cameras. It remains unlikely he will resign, but his pointed references to that 18-month time frame did not exactly imply that he would be happy to renew his contract — at least while things are as they are. You can read his remarks below.
Some important extra context: before the Leeds game, Amorim had been asked to clarify previous comments in which he suggested the club would have to spend "a lot of money" to build a team capable of playing his preferred 3-4-3 system to perfection. Essentially, he refused to do so.
"I don't want to talk about that. I just focus on the Leeds game," he said.
He agreed it was unlike him to refuse to engage with a question, and when pressed on whether he had spoken recently with sporting director Jason Wilcox about transfers, he added: "I don't want to talk about that. You are very smart."
Ruben Amorim post-match interview in full after Leeds draw
Here is the final section of Amorim's post-match press conference after the 1-1 draw at Leeds. He stood up and left at the end of his second answer.
Asked if he still feels he has the board's support after appearing downbeat before the game: "I notice that you receive selective information about everything. I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. That is clear.
"I know my name is not [Thomas] Tuchel, is not [Antonio] Conte, is not [Jose] Mourinho, but I am the manager of Manchester United. It's going to be like this for 18 months, or when the board decides to change. So, 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."
Q: Do you feel that maybe certain assurances around things, the ability to manage this team, you thought you had, do you not feel that — "I just want to say that I'm going to be the manager of this team, not just the coach, and I was really clear on that. And that is going to finish in 18 months, and then everyone is going to move on. 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. No, guys. I just want to say that: I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach, and 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."
Is there tension between Ruben Amorim and Jason Wilcox?
Amorim's recent public comments have hinted at disagreements within the United power structure, most likely between the man in charge of the team and the man in charge of recruitment: Jason Wilcox, the sporting director.
TalkSPORT claimed on January 4, in the hours after Amorim's post-Leeds comments, that there was "growing tension" between Wilcox and Amorim. The suggestion is that Wilcox believes Amorim should be more tactically flexible, while the head coach — who has bristled at the idea of being told to change systems before — expected at least some transfer activity in the January window.
United were interested in Antoine Semenyo, but the Bournemouth winger chose to sign for Manchester City instead. While this is not Wilcox's fault, the fact that the proposed £65 million for Semenyo looks unlikely to be diverted towards another top target this month would seem to be a big source of frustration for Amorim.
Whether United do make any signings this month remains to be seen, but there is clearly tension behind the scenes at Old Trafford that needs to be eased somehow.
Ruben Amorim contract, salary
Amorim signed a contract running to the end of the 2026/27 season when he was appointed in November 2024. The deal has the option of an additional year.
The Portuguese said when he arrived that he had wanted to put off taking the job until the end of 2024/25, but United officials had told him it was "now or never".
According to an article published by The Sun just after Amorim was appointed by United, his contract is worth £6.5 million ($8.7m) per year. That breaks down to around £125,000 ($167,000) per week.
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