Amorim Welcomes Ratcliffe’s Comments But Cautions ‘Football Is Not Like That’

‎Ruben Amorim has welcomed Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s backing as Manchester United’s head coach but stated that he and the minority owner know that “football is not like that”.

‎Last week, Ratcliffe stated that Amorim will be given three years to prove himself after a disappointing first 11 months in charge.

‎The 40-year-old leads United to Anfield aiming to secure back-to-back Premier League wins for the first time.

‎His side sits 10th, has collected 37 points from 34 league games under him, finished 15th last season, and were eliminated from the Carabao Cup by Grimsby Town, of League Two, in August.

‎Amorim was asked about ­Ratcliffe’s support. “He tells me all the time, sometimes with a ­message after games,” the Portuguese said.

‎“But you know, I know and Jim knows that football is not like that. The most important thing is the next game. You cannot control, even the owners, you cannot control the next day in football.

‎“But it’s really good to hear, also because of the noise, but Omar [Berrada, chief ­executive] and Jason [Wilcox, ­director of football] tell me that all the time.”

‎Amorim is clear that he wants to turn United around as soon as ­possible.

‎“Sometimes the pressure that I put on the team or on myself is so much bigger than them,” he said.

‎“I know that it’s going to take a while, but I don’t want to think like that because it will give a feeling that we have time to work things out. So I don’t want that feeling here in our club.”

‎Senne Lammens, the goalkeeper who arrived in the summer window, impressed on his debut as United beat Sunderland 2-0 before the international break.

‎Fans even chanted, “Are you Schmeichel in disguise?” in reference to the Belgian, seen as one of the club’s best keepers.

‎Amorim said, “He is not Schmeichel yet. He is a young guy [23] with talent. He shows a lot of composure. And the fans like it. But again, we [he] need to prove it in the next game.”