Defeat against Arsenal, the same against Nottingham Forest. Two Premier League games without a point, but with United’s first away win in the European Cup in two years. This was the start of Amorim’s first Manchester derby. This was the night where Manchester United were once again painted red. In a way we haven’t seen since the days of Ferguson.
When Manchester City go into the final quarter of an hour with a 1-0 lead at the Etihad, this means victory. Not on Sunday, with Ruben Amorim on the sidelines.
Ruben Amorim never left the game plan and never let the United players slow down until the referee decided the game was over. It worked, two late goals quieted down the light blue part of the Etihad.
A 1-2 win for Manchester United in Amorim’s first city derby, a feat that is due to the United players learning from the Arsenal game.
“We were in the game for 90 minutes, and that’s very good. We’ve talked about the Arsenal game where we played well in the first half, but the players didn’t think we could win. Today was so much different,” Amorim begins, according to the BBC.
“It was fantastic. I think we deserved it. It was a very difficult game, but we believed in it until the end. We managed to score and we needed that win. It was important for us and for our fans. I also had faith. It was “Fergie time” (Ferguson often squeezed in goals in the closing minutes). We got things to fall into place and something magical happened. It was a good day for us,” says a satisfied Amorim.
As Sporting coach, Amorim half-humorously stated that United supporters would think “the next Ferguson is coming” if Sporting beat Manchester City in the Champions League. Sporting won 4-1. On Sunday, it was again the feeling for United supporters that Amorim has what it takes to lift Manchester United. Highly.
