Ruben Amorim has been told that the manager isn't the problem at Manchester United, who have been advised to "get back to schoolboy football". The former Sporting CP coach, who was parachuted into Old Trafford last November with a glowing reputation, has seen his new chapter in England crash hard amid an extremely poor run of results.
Struggles continue for Amorim
Just 34 Premier League points from 33 matches paints a grim picture for Amorim, with United enduring their worst-ever league finish last season. The nightmare shows no sign of ending. A 3-1 collapse to Brentford was their third defeat in six games, leaving United buried in the bottom half of the table. And the Theatre of Dreams has rarely looked so flat.
AdvertisementGOALJohnson's brutal verdict on Man Utd's woes
But Glen Johnson, ex-England and Premier League defender, insisted Amorim is more victim than villain. The former Chelsea and West Ham right-back has pulled no punches in his assessment, claiming the club’s problems stretch far beyond the manager’s touchline.
"I can see Amorim sticking it out at United purely because the club might think they have to stand by a manager at some point," he said in an interview with
"They’ve been through so many different names already, maybe they will decide that always chopping and changing isn’t the answer. With the squad they’ve got, the players just aren’t good enough to be challenging the top sides. That’s why Manchester United are where they are, not because of the manager. They’re getting beaten because the squad isn’t good enough."
According to Johnson, the Red Devils have become a pale imitation of their past glory days. Once a powerhouse that struck fear across Europe, United are now reduced to a fragile side that crumbles under the slightest pressure.
"The United of old is long gone," he added. "Everyone’s expecting them to fight back into the top four, and they’re just nowhere near that anymore. They’ve shown for years now that they aren’t good enough, so I don’t think you can just pin it on the manager. There’s a lot that needs fixing. If they sack Amorim, they have a new manager who inherits the same squad. Then what?"
A hopeless merry-go-round
Johnson made it clear he sees no manager capable of turning the tide with the current squad. In his eyes, Amorim is just the latest in a line of scapegoats.
"I don’t think I could recommend any manager who would be the right one to fix this, because it’s the same for years with these players," he said. "The same mistakes. I feel sorry for this manager and I’d feel sorry for the next one, because they will always be the ones getting the blame and getting sacked. In this state, there’s no manager who could get them back to the top any time soon."
Johnson’s sharpest attack was aimed at United’s defensive disaster zone. He ridiculed their inability to deal with even the most basic situations and suggested them to go back to the drawing board.
"They’re just so inconsistent. Defensively, they’re shocking. You can’t build consistency if you have no foundation," he said. "It’s a top club, they’re a huge name. For years they were the best, and now they can’t defend a straight, 50-yard pass. It’s crazy to see. They need to get back to the basics. Not of the Premier League, but of schoolboy football."
Getty Images SportSunderland showdown looms
The misery tour continues this weekend, with United set to face Sunderland on Saturday in the Premier League. Once, that fixture would have been considered a routine three points. Now, with the Red Devils floundering, it looks like another potential banana skin. Amorim will again be on the touchline, hoping his players show more fight than they have so far. But as Johnson bluntly warned, unless United relearn the absolute basics, it won’t matter who’s calling the shots.