Updated: 6 Jul 2026 16:10 BST |
4 min read
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New AC Milan head coach Ruben Amorim has made an eyebrow-raising comment on his former club Manchester United.
The Portuguese has returned to coaching after his explosive sacking by Man Utd in January. Amorim, who endured a miserable spell in the Old Trafford dugout, was dismissed after effectively snapping.
The 41-year-old took exception to Man Utd director Jason Wilcox offering tactical advice in a behind-the-scenes meeting and aired his frustrations in public. During a press conference, Amorim insisted that interference from above was unacceptable and that he should hold the title of “manager” rather than just “head coach.”
His position became untenable after openly criticising his superiors, and he was sacked shortly thereafter. Interim boss Michael Carrick later made Amorim look like a fool by comfortably qualifying Man Utd for the Champions League. He has since been named permanent head coach.
After five months without a job, Amorim was appointed AC Milan head coach in mid-June. The Rossoneri cleaned house after failing to qualify for the Champions League and sacked their entire sporting management, including manager Massimiliano Allegri.
Amorim: Milan challenge bigger than Man Utd
Amorim has already been backed by Milan in quite remarkable fashion. Last week, the Serie A giants announced the capture of PSG striker Goncalo Ramos, shattering the club’s spending record by paying €74 million for the Portugal international.
More player movement is expected, both on the incoming and outgoing fronts. Superstar winger Rafael Leao, for example, is expected to depart the club, while goalkeeper Mike Maignan is reportedly also exploring his options.
On Monday, Amorim arrived in Milan and faced the media for the first time as new Rossoneri boss. The Portuguese is known to be incredibly honest, sometimes to a fault, and he immediately raised eyebrows with one of his comments.
Unprompted, Amorim admitted that Milan are an even bigger mess than Man Utd were when he arrived there, and he confessed that he initially was not keen on helming another mismanaged giant.
“I’m really happy to be here,” Amorim began. “It’s an honour to be the coach of AC Milan. If you look at an old interview of mine, I said this is a special club for me.
“It’s a great challenge. After the last time [at Man Utd] I promised myself to choose a smaller challenge, and yet here I am, it’s an even bigger challenge. But I’m proud to be here. Now, I want to work with my staff and my players. I’m really happy to be here.”
The 41-year-old added that he took the job with one clear objective: to win. “You can’t come to Milan without this mentality. I’m not naive, and I know we have a lot to do, but if you’re the coach of Milan, you have to play to win.”
The old interview he referenced took place in 2017. In it, Amorim revealed his childhood love for Milan and Benfica and presciently said that he would one day have to manage the Rossoneri after failing to join the club during his playing days.
“As a child, I had two great passions: Benfica and AC Milan,” he said in 2017. “I still remember spending hours watching tapes of [Arrigo] Sacchi and [Fabio] Capello’s Rossoneri: [Paolo] Maldini, [Franco] Baresi, [Ruud] Gullit, [Frank] Rijkaard, [Dejan] Savicevic.
“My childhood dreams were to play for Benfica and AC Milan. I only managed to achieve one. Now I’ll have to coach the Rossoneri.”
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