Ruben Amorim has been sacked as Manchester United manager after 14 months in charge. Here are seven big games where it went wrong for him at Old Trafford.
Tottenham 1-0 Man Utd – 21 May, 2025 (Europa League final)
Bilbao – the defining match of the Amorim era. Win and the Champions League awaited with a €115million windfall. Lose and there would be no European football the following season. In a low-quality Battle of Britain clash against Tottenham at San Mames Stadium, United were dreadful in losing 1-0 to a scruffy Brennan Johnson goal. Amorim raised eyebrows by leaving Alejandro Garnacho on the bench until the final 20 minutes, as United dominated possession but created few clear-cut chances.
Man Utd 0-3 Bournemouth – 22 December, 2024 (Premier League)
"Everything is so hard," was Amorim's assessment after United were beaten at home by Bournemouth for the second successive season and the Old Trafford faithful had booed his team off. Goals from Dean Huijsen, Justin Kluivert and Antoine Semenyo left Amorim with just seven points from six games in charge. Amorim had reflected on his first game at Ipswich a month earlier – a 1-1 draw – by saying, "We will suffer for a long period", but the sound of alarm bells going off was deafening.
Wolves 2-0 Man Utd – 26 December, 2024 (Premier League)
If Amorim was seeking an instant response from the Bournemouth mess he was disappointed at Molineux as Wolves delivered a knockout punch on St Stephen's Dat. Matheus Cunha, who would join United the following summer, became the second player in three games to score directly from a corner against his team, the ball sailing over Andre Onana’s head. Hwang Hee-chan sealed matters on an abject night for United that saw captain Bruno Fernandes sent off for the third time in the campaign.
Newcastle 4-1 Man Utd – 13 April, 2025 (Premier League)
Amorim gave Turkey goalkeeper Altay Bayindir his top-flight chance after deciding to take Onana out of the firing line following high-profile errors against Lyon in the Europa League. But the move backfired as Bayindir conceded with the first shot he faced and was culpable for giving the ball away as Bruno Guimaraes scored Newcastle’s fourth. In total, Bayindir was beaten four times from six shots and captain Fernandes reflected that "this club has never suffered like this".
Grimsby 2-2 Man Utd (Grimsby won 12-11 on pens) – 27 August, 2025 (Carabao Cup)
Fresh optimism was washed away by the Humber as League Two Grimsby produced one of the biggest shocks in cup history. Amorim was lampooned for getting a tactics board out on the touchline as the Mariners took a 2-0 lead through Charles Vernam and Tyrell Warren, who punished a dreadful Andre Onana error. United levelled through Bryan Mbeumo and Harry Maguire but lost an extraordinary penalty shoot-out 12-11, as Grimsby fans taunted Amorim with "sacked in the morning" chants.
Brentford 3-1 Man Utd – 27 September, 2025 (Premier League)
Shambolic defending was at the heart of another miserable United show. Maguire was twice caught trying to play offside as Igor Thiago’s brace put Brentford in command. Benjamin Sesko halved the deficit with his first goal since making a €85m summer move from RB Leipzig, but there was no reprieve for United as Fernandes missed his second penalty in a month. Mathias Jensen wrapped it up for the Bees in stoppage time as Amorim’s bid to win successive league games for the first time after 10 months in charge was destroyed.
Man Utd 1-1 Wolves – 30 December, 2025 (Premier League)
United were booed off as their topsy-turvy 2025 ended with a dismal draw at home to the Premier League’s bottom side. Wolves won only their third point of the season in ending an 11-match losing run. Joshua Zirkzee’s deflected shot gave United a fortunate lead that was wiped out by Ladislav Krejci. Amorim spoke about being "really confident" of United’s potential after the game, but behind the scenes tension was building and he would be gone less than a week later.
