MANCHESTER, United Kingdom, May 6 – Portuguese Ruben Amorim walked away with a whooping Ksh 1.7 billion (£10million) pay-off on Monday when he was sacked as Manchester United’s head coach after 14 months in charge at Old Trafford.
Amorim was summoned to the club’s Carrington training base and dismissed by chief executive Omar Berrada and director of football Jason Wilcox after clashing with United’s hierarchy over the last week.
Under-18s coach Darren Fletcher has been installed as caretaker manager for Wednesday night’s trip to Burnley, with United set to name an interim boss until the end of the season.
Fletcher’s former team-mate Michael Carrick, who took temporary charge for three games in 2021, and ex-United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer were among the early contenders last night
Amorim’s compensation package took the total cost of hiring and firing him to nearly Khs 4.7 billion (£27 million)
United bought out his contract at Sporting Lisbon in October 2024 for Ksh 1.4 billion (£8.3 million), and paid another Ksh 157 million (£900,000) so he could start work early. He signed a Ksh 1.1 billion (£6.5 million-a-year deal until June 2027, meaning his pay-off for the remainder of his contract is around Ksh 1.7 billion (£10.05 million)
-Compensation of backroom team-
United will also have to compensate the five-man backroom team who followed him from Portugal.
Amorim presided over the second half of United’s worst season in more than half a century as the club missed out on European football for only the second time in 35 years.
ALSO READ: EX-Red Devils Full-Back Neville: Stop Experiments And Get Manager Who Fits Man Utd DNA
He only won 25 of his 63 games in charge, giving him the worst win percentage and lowest point-per-game average in the Premier League era. He leaves with United sixth in the table.
His downfall was sealed by a reluctance to compromise on his preferred system of three central defenders which brought him into conflict with his bosses.
Daily Mail Sport understands that the decision to dismiss Amorim was taken by the United hierarchy on Friday, two days before the 1-1 draw at Leeds.
The verdict followed a meeting between Amorim and Wilcox after last Tuesday’s draw against bottom-placed Wolves – a match in which Amorim reverted to a back-three.
According to sources, Amorim was told that United’s squad, bolstered by £250m of summer recruitment, were good enough to earn trust and that they were capable of playing more attacking football.
However, it would appear that the message failed to hit home and was met with a furious response from the Portuguese boss.
Amorim made veiled comments about his issues with the hierarchy in a press conference before the trip to Elland Road. When he launched into an extraordinary rant after the game, his fate was sealed.
The decision to sack him is understood to have been made with the full backing of the board and minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe.
United sources said that they have not seen ‘enough signs of evolution or progress’ and had axed Amorim to give the squad the best chance to achieve its aims this season.
The 40-year-old had complained over his role as head coach but insiders pointed out that he had agreed to work within the set-up and had been given unwavering support.
Amorim had also hinted at a lack of backing in the current window. Sources said that while there is room to do business, United had targeted the summer for their next major recruitment push and the head coach was on board with those plans.
Fletcher is expected to take charge of at least the next two matches against Burnley and Brighton in the FA Cup.
Installing an interim until the summer would give the club time to assess a permanent appointment, with a host of top managers such as Thomas Tuchel and Carlo Ancelotti potentially available after the World Cup.
