Ruben Amorim’s assistant at Manchester United has said the Portuguese manager needed more time at Old Trafford to properly introduce and develop his tactical approach, adding that many of Amorim’s ideas were not fully implemented during his spell in charge.
Speaking about Amorim’s tenure, the assistant explained that the coaching staff arrived with a clear plan for how they wanted United to play, including detailed structures for build-up play, pressing, and transitions. However, he indicated that the period in charge was too short to fully embed those concepts across the squad.
According to the assistant, Amorim and his staff focused heavily on training-ground work designed to change the team’s style in a gradual but consistent way. Sessions emphasized positional play, coordinated movement without the ball, and specific roles for players in different phases of the game. The intention was to create a more cohesive, proactive side capable of controlling matches over 90 minutes.
He suggested that while some elements of Amorim’s philosophy appeared in certain performances, the group never reached the level of tactical fluency the staff had targeted. The assistant pointed to the time required to adjust habits formed under previous managers, as well as the challenge of aligning an entire squad to new positional demands and decision-making patterns.
The staff member also underlined that implementing a new footballing identity at a major club is typically a long-term process, relying not only on training but also on squad planning, player profiles, and continuity. Without a sustained run of weeks and months to reinforce principles in matches and practice, he said, many of the planned changes remained only partially realized.
He added that Amorim remained convinced his ideas could have worked at United given a longer runway, arguing that clear structures and consistent messaging eventually bring results when players fully understand and trust the system. In his view, the project was still in a foundational stage when it ended, leaving important aspects of Amorim’s tactical model unfinished.
Despite the frustrations about the limited time frame, the assistant described the experience at Old Trafford as professionally valuable. He noted that working within the expectations and scrutiny surrounding Manchester United offered insight into the scale and complexity of leading one of the world’s most closely watched clubs, while also reinforcing his belief in the need for patience and stability when attempting to reshape a team’s style of play.
