Reasons to finally be cheerful? Ruben Amorim’s year as coach of Manchester United

Had the first anniversary of Amorim been celebrated on October 1, the verdict would have been almost exclusively negative.

At that point, only Tottenham out of the 17 teams that remained in the Premier League throughout his tenure had fewer points than the 34 teams from 33 matches. After three successive wins, Wolves and West Ham are now behind them.

On Thursday, for the first time, Amorim was shortlisted for the position of Manager of the Month. He was asked in his press conference about the possibility of qualifying for the Champions League.

If they win at the City Ground, United will finish second.

Even if it is only for a few hours, it will be the first time they have reached such a high level in the middle of a season, since the win over West Ham in September 2021, right before Solskjaer’s world collapsed.

Amorim warned against exaggerating his team’s current level. But three successive wins combined with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s “three years” comments mean that the recounting of the events of his first year does not read like an elegy.

A month ago, the stinging rebuke of a critic close to the dressing room was that Amorim’s brilliant press conferences were all he was good at.

However, even though the box office offers these films, it’s the part of the job he loves the least. He is emotional, and it shows after the matches. But except in solemn moments, when he speaks on behalf of the club on matters of importance, his words are not rehearsed.

His playful nature contrasts with his strong, serious personality on the training field – and his sometimes detached presence.

Last season, when the media were allowed to observe the first 15 minutes of training before European matches, it was notable that Amorim watched the routine sprints and rondo exercises alone, from a different court, sometimes 50 yards away.

He explained that this was partly because he had no role to play, but also because he was using the time to think about the messages he would present in the main session.

Video footage of his first training session last November shows Amorim telling midfielder Kobe Maino exactly how many steps he needs to move after passing the ball, and then where to open his body to create maximum passing angles.

This summer, sources said there were points where two players were occupying the same positions in training, before going through different scenarios to ensure they moved to the correct area of ​​the pitch.

While this may seem strange, it makes sense since Amorim knows which players fit into which position on his team.

That first recorded session also showed Amorim working on speed in transitions, especially defensive transitions.

Finally, with gaps between matches allowing for full weeks of preparation, these reinforced messages are paying off. The terrible days at Grimsby and Brentford are extremes, not normal ones.

United officials now say, as they have done consistently over the past 12 months, there has been no internal dialogue about Amorim’s future. The club hierarchy, from Ratcliffe down, is supportive. The goal for this season is European qualification.

But were there times when Amorim himself wondered if he would ever make it this far?

“It’s hard to say,” he said. “There were some moments that were difficult to deal with, losing a lot of games, it was very difficult for me because this is Manchester United.

“To put all the attention on the Europa League and not win it was huge.

“So, I had some moments where I struggled a lot, and I was thinking maybe it wasn’t supposed to happen. Today is the opposite. Today I feel – and I know – it was the best decision of my life, and I want to be here.”