Gary Neville fires back at Ruben Amorim after feisty Man Utd comments | Football | Sport
Gary Neville has criticised Ruben Amorim’s “bizarre” post-match press conference remarks after the Manchester United boss appeared to suggest that both he and the club would part company when his contract runs out. The Red Devils’ boss raised questions about his future at Old Trafford following Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Leeds.
Amorim had already alluded to behind-the-scenes tensions during Friday’s press conference before intensifying the situation at Elland Road. “Guys, to stop with that, I noticed that you receive selective information about everything,” he declared. “I came here to be the manager of Manchester United, not to be the coach of Manchester United. And that is clear. I know that my name is not [Thomas] Tuchel, it’s not [Antonio] Conte, it’s not [Jose] Mourinho, but I’m the manager of Manchester United.
“And it’s going to be like this for 18 months, or when the board decides to change. So that was my point, I want to finish with that. I’m not going to quit. I will do my job until the other guy is coming here to replace me.”
The Portuguese tactician also reiterated that all parties would depart when his deal concludes in 18 months’ time. He additionally implied that he had been guaranteed greater authority to transform the club, whilst also referencing Neville during his comments.
“I just want to say that I’m going to be the manager of this team, not just the coach,” he added. “And I was really clear on that. And that is going to finish in 18 months and then everyone is going to move on. That was the deal.
“That is my job, not to be a coach. If people can’t handle Gary Neville and the criticism of everything, we need to change the club. No, guys, I just want to say that I came here to manage Manchester United, not to be the coach. And every department, the scouting department, the sports director, needs to do their job. I will do mine for 18 months and then we move on.”
Following Amorim’s outburst, Neville was asked for his take on the situation during the Gary Neville podcast from the Etihad Stadium. “Some bizarre comments around, ‘I’m a manager, not a head coach’. I just said about [Enzo] Maresca, once you start playing games in your press conferences, something is clearly bothering him, he’s not feeling the support and he’s letting go,” Neville commented.
“To say that you’ve come to the club as a manager, I thought he was appointed head coach of the football club and tasked with coaching the team. Manager is a title that we don’t see anymore. I don’t know what Pep Guardiola is at Manchester City.
“Manager suggests that he’s saying that he wants to manage more than just the training ground performance. He wants to oversee other parts of the club. They have a greater say on other parts of the club, like recruitment, academy, style of play and how the club organise their pre-season friendlies.
“He’s implying, perhaps, that he needs to be given more control over various departments of the club. I’ve not seen the press conference at all, they’ve just been forwarded to me by the staff producer, but [he said] about other people doing their job in their department.
“That would suggest again that he’s discontented with something. Something has transpired there in the past week with the quotes that are emerging, indicating that Ruben Amorim is now starting to let loose, much like Maresca did.
“It’s not exactly the same, but it’s somewhat similar in the sense that it’s not explicitly clear what it means, but everyone’s having to read between the lines. It appears to me that he’s unhappy about something within the hierarchy.
“He’s also mentioned my name in it, apparently. That’s the sort of thing managers tend to do during challenging periods, they take a swipe at pundits. I have no issue with that whatsoever. I’ve actually been quite supportive of Manchester United’s performances against Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Newcastle.
“I thought they were very good. I couldn’t back them the other night against Wolves, if that’s what he’s referring to. It wasn’t right the other night and you have to say that. It wasn’t right against 10-men Everton.
“I am going to call out when I see things that aren’t right because that’s my job. That aside, the bigger problem isn’t about what he said about me, matter of fact, it’s not a problem at all, it’s more the problem of what he’s saying is happening behind the scenes.”
