Immediate Ruben Amorim return ruled out as Manchester United warned about ‘hurricane’ long-term replacement

Ruben Amorim will not be returning to management this season – he won’t be repeating his Manchester United mistake.

That’s the view of European football broadcaster Andy Brassell, who has also warned the Red Devils over potentially bringing in Antonio Conte in the summer.

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United sacked Amorim on January 5 after just 14 months in charge – where he lost 23 out of his 63 matches across all competitions.

Michael Carrick has since been appointed on an interim basis until the end of the season, having stepped in for Darren Fletcher, who oversaw two games as the club’s caretaker.

talkSPORT understands that Amorim is being eyed up for a potential return to Benfica – nine years after departing the Estadio da Luz.

Mor drama

He could replace former United boss Jose Mourinho at the end of the campaign, with the Special One to potentially become Portugal’s national team manager after the 2026 World Cup.

Amorim was on Benfica’s books from between 2008-2017 – chipping in with six goals and 14 assists in 154 outings.

He later managed their bitter rivals Sporting Lisbon, who he guided to win two Primeira Liga titles and two Taca da Liga triumphs.

Speaking to talkSPORT.com about the 40-year-old’s future, Brassell has stated that Amorim will not rush into a new job – insisting he begrudgingly linked up with United after being given an ultimatum.

He said: “I can’t see Amorim taking another job before the end of this campaign, because he took the United job mid-season completely against his own judgement.

“Because, as we know, he wanted to take it on at the start of this season and United said, ‘Well, it’s now or never, you can’t make us wait.’

“Whereas the reality of it is United, like say Real Madrid, change managers every couple of seasons.

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“So if he carried on doing well, of course the opportunity would have come up for him later down the line, but when your pride is calling, it’s difficult to say no.”

And Brassell believes that Amorim will have to work his way back up if he wants to manage another one of European’s top teams.

He remarked: “I don’t see why Amorim wouldn’t be a choice [for Benfica], I think as well, you have to look at what’s available elsewhere.

“I think he’s unlikely to be taking on another Premier League job at the moment, I think if you look at Spain, he’s not taking on Real Madrid or Barcelona or Atletico [Madrid].

“And then financially, there’s a bit of a steep drop off there, so clubs that might have interested him in the past, like Valencia and Sevilla, don’t have the means to satisfy him.

“It would be a right old struggler, [at] either of those teams, they’re down the bottom of the table, despite being massive clubs, for a reason.

“There’s not a lot of obvious landing spots for Ruben Amorim, maybe there’s something we’re overlooking, maybe the Bundesliga might work out for him.

“Maybe he’d be a coach for a club at the top end of that, a little bit down the line.

“But in terms of elite jobs, he’s not getting another one until he proves himself somewhere else.”

Italian job?

While Carrick will be in United’s dugout for the remainder of the campaign, it remains to be seen who will land the full-time job in the summer.

A section of fans are calling for the appointment of Napoli boss Antonio Conte, who has Premier League experience having coached Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.

Though Brassell has stated that Conte’s ‘hurricane’ nature will lead to clashes with the United board, who axed Amorim as a result of their disagreements.

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And he is also of the opinion that like his spells at Chelsea and Spurs, who he failed to manage for more than two years, he would only be a short-term fix for United.

Brassell said: “If there was ever a season that Conte was going to work out at Old Trafford, it would have been this one, because they don’t have any European football.”

Before adding: “I just wonder how Jim Ratcliffe [United co-owner] and Ineos would see that and Jason Wilcox [United Director of Football] would see that [Conte’s intenseness].

“I mean, if Wilcox had difficulties finding a click with Amorim, even though they seemed to get on quite well initially, how would he find Antonio Conte? Because Conte is an absolute hurricane of a guy, and he’s way more experienced as well.

“So, whether he suits United’s current model, I think there’s a big question to that.

“In terms of style, of course, if he just turns up and wins, great, there’s nothing to complain about.

“But if he did come to United, I feel convinced that it would be for a short time.”

Brassell concluded by saying: “I find him working in England a difficult prospect to really, really imagine.

“Even though I’m sure United would be prepared to throw a lot of money at it.”