Getty/GOALThe Red Devils will need to start from scratch again under the Portuguese, which won't be possible until the dressing room deadwood is cleared
A new era is dawning at Old Trafford, again. Sporting CP have agreed to let Ruben Amorim depart and take over as Manchester United's new permanent head coach, after accepting a compensation package in the region of €10m. Amorim has signed an initial two-and-a-half-year contract at Old Trafford, succeeding Erik ten Hag after the Dutchman's long-awaited dismissal on October 28.
To say that a huge task awaits Amorim is the understatement of the century. United haven't won the Premier League since Sir Alex Ferguson's final season in charge over a decade ago, and went into the weekend sat 14th in the table after their worst-ever start to a season.
Still, there is a wave of excitement sweeping across the red half of Manchester over Amorim's impending arrival. When Sporting hired Amorim in 2020, they'd gone 19 years without winning the Primeira Division, but he proceeded to deliver two titles in the space of the next four seasons. And most importantly, from United's point of view, Amorim gave Sporting a distinct identity, which was always lacking during Ten Hag's tenure.
Unfortunately, though, being a good coach won't be enough for Amorim to replicate the success he enjoyed with Sporting at Old Trafford. He's inheriting a very mediocre squad full of prima donnas. Ten Hag was guilty of bringing in many of them, but he also failed to get rid of the disruptive figures who had undermined his predecessors, and paid the ultimate price for his poor judgement.
History will repeat itself if Amorim makes the same mistake. GOAL has listed the eight players United's new manager must ship out to end the vicious cycle of failure, all of whom have fallen well short of the standards required at one of the world's biggest clubs…
