Manchester United have officially announced the appointment of Ruben Amorim as their new head coach on a contract until June 2027 – while a controversial pundit who earned his coaching badges alongside the 39-year-old has revealed why he thinks that the Red Devils get a winner. .

Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Co moved quickly to have Amorim named as replacement for Erik ten Hag, who was ultimately sacked after a miserable start to the season on Monday. Sunday’s 2-1 defeat at West Ham – the club’s fourth defeat in nine Premier League matches this season – proved to be the beleaguered Dutchman’s final act. Manchester United chief.

However, even though they quickly identified Amorim As the preferred candidate to succeed him – and become the club’s sixth permanent appointment since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson 11-and-a-half years ago – removing him from Sporting Lisbon was not a simple process.

But after agreeing to meet the £8.3 million clause in his contract, United have now reached a breakthrough in their negotiations with Sporting Lisbon with the Premier League giants, confirming an agreement has been reached on an initial agreement of two and a half years. at Old Trafford.

In a statement on the the club websiteUnited confirmed: “Manchester United are delighted to announce the appointment of Ruben Amorim as head coach of the men’s first team, subject to work visa requirements.

“He will join until June 2027 with a club option of a further year, once he has fulfilled his obligations to his current club. He will join Manchester United on Monday November 11.

“Ruben is one of the most exciting and highest-rated young coaches in European football. Highly decorated both as a player and manager, his titles include winning the Primeira Liga twice in Portugal with Sporting CP; the first of which was the club’s first title in 19 years.

“Ruud van Nistelrooy will continue to lead the team until Ruben arrives.”

With his start date set for Monday, November 11 and with an international break to follow, Amorim’s first game in charge will not take place until November 24 when the Red Devils visit struggling Ipswich Town at Portman Road.

His first match at Old Trafford follows on Thursday this week when Bodo/Glimt visit the Europa League on November 28, with his first domestic match at home to Everton on December 1.

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Amorim is expected to be joined at Old Trafford by Carlos Fernandes, Adelio Candido and Emanuel Ferro (assistants), Jorge Vital (goalkeeping coach) and Paulo Barreira (fitness coach), although United are yet to officially confirm the news.

What’s more, it is understood he will receive more than triple the salary he earned at Sporting (£2.15m per year) while earning £6.5m per season with United.

Meanwhile, former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor has spoken warmly of Amorim, having undergone his coaching badges alongside the Portuguese.

“I did my coaching badges with him,” he said. talkSPORT. “You do your own sessions because you have to pass the badges.

“He was one of those who was there and you could tell he was so interested that he had to get his badges to start managing.

“It’s not as easy as you think. You organize different sessions. The first one I practiced was a session of crosses and finishes, a ballkeeping session then a shooting session. He was very focused.

“Since the start of last season, Sporting Lisbon has scored the most goals in the first six championships. They’ve been waiting 19 years to win a title, here he goes and they’ve won two in the last five seasons.

“I just think when you look at what he has done since leaving Braga for Sporting Lisbon, winning their first title in 19 years, Manchester United have the right man.”

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Meanwhile, Amorim are expected to quickly impose their own tactics and formation at Old Trafford, moving away from Ten Hag’s favored 4-2-3-1 formation to a more fluid 3-4-3 system.

But as part of this change in formation, one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s former assistants, René Meulensteen believes that two of Ten Hag’s very first recruits, Casemiro and Christian Eriksen, will soon disappear from the picture.believing that their style is not suited to playing in such a system.

Amorim is also linked with a move to bring Swede Viktor Gyokeres to Old Trafford in one of his first deals.

The Swedish striker moved to the Portuguese capital in the summer of 2023 and has scored an incredible 59 goals in 65 matches for Sporting.

Strongly linked with a move to Arsenal, expert Tim Sherwood has now explained why he can ‘100% see this boy coming’ – but suggested it could come at the expense of a major Ten Hag signing if that move were to happen.

They’re not the only Sporting CP stars linked with a move to Old Trafford, either. And according to sources, we understand that three other big Sporting stars have already spoken with the leaders of the Red Devils. Goncalo Inácio, Marcus Edwards and Pedro Goncalves already in his sights.

Amorim’s record at Sporting compared to Ten Hag at Ajax