Three weeks ago, Ruben Amorim was supposedly one bad result away from the sack.
Manchester United were flat, the headlines were hostile, and his name was already being whispered on the managerial death watch. Now, after wins over Sunderland, Liverpool, and Brighton, United are fourth, with a positive goal difference and the scent of optimism wafting faintly through Old Trafford.
Amorim, though, isn’t buying the hype. “You said it, three weeks,” he reminded reporters after the 4–2 victory over Brighton.
“It can change in the next three.”
The comment summed him up: pragmatic, dry, and quietly in control. For all the hysteria that surrounds United, Amorim has refused to lose his footing. It’s working. His team finally resembles a coherent unit—disciplined in shape, inventive in attack, and mentally alive.
Since Jim Ratcliffe’s investment, United have badly needed stability. Ratcliffe, present at Old Trafford for the Brighton win, has publicly backed Amorim’s project, insisting the Portuguese coach deserves three years.
That kind of patience is rare in football, rarer still in Manchester. But results are finally vindicating the vision.
The recent victories weren’t flukes. United beat Sunderland and Brighton, both clubs that conquered Chelsea with authority.
Against Brighton, the attack finally clicked: Matheus Cunha scored his first goal of the season, while Bryan Mbeumo continued his blistering form, netting his fifth. Amorim praised their blend of hunger and intelligence.
“Matheus wants responsibility. Bryan is a machine, his connection with Amad [Diallo] is special,” he said.
There’s also a quiet revolution at the back. Sanne Lammens, the young Belgian goalkeeper, lacks flash but oozes calm, a blessed contrast to the chaos that followed Onana and Bayindir.
Matthijs de Ligt is commanding the defence, while Casemiro, reborn and restored to Brazil’s captaincy, has rediscovered purpose. “He was behind every midfielder,” Amorim said. “He fought and worked. Football changes fast.”
It helps that United’s calendar is mercifully light. With no European fixtures and a League Cup exit that now looks strategic, Amorim has time to train, recalibrate, and breathe.
Still, he’s not deluded. United have turned a corner, yes, but this is Manchester United, where corners have a habit of circling back on themselves.
Amorim’s side are climbing, the football is flowing, and, for the first time in nearly a year, Old Trafford feels like it believes again.
