Amorim and the triumph at Old Trafford: “I will take this to the end of my career”
Portuguese coach reacts to his first win in charge of Manchester United
This is Ruben Amorim’s first victory as Manchester United coach and on his debut at Old Trafford. The Red Devils beat Bodo/Glimt 3-2 in the Europa League , and at the end of the match, the Portuguese coach spoke to TNT, highlighting the support of the fans: «Half the stadium doesn’t know me, they don’t really know me. I came from Portugal and I haven’t done anything for this club yet. So the way they make me feel at home is very special. It’s not after something, it’s before something. This is something special and I’ll take this with me until the end of my career.»
“I’m anxious because I don’t know what’s going to happen, because we don’t control anything at the moment, we’re trying to try different things. Of course we have an idea for each game, but I don’t know the players and we haven’t worked together much, so we go into the game excited because we want to see different things, but at the same time we’re a bit anxious and nervous because we don’t know how the game will go,” said Amorim.
Speaking to DAZN, the Portuguese player explained what he felt on his debut at his new home: “It was a different feeling, it’s incredible to enter the stadium and make that journey, there’s always a first time, it’s always special, but above all winning. It was very important to have the first victory to better prepare for the next game and this never changes, no matter what club it is, the important thing is to win the game so you can have better quality of work, more patience, to prepare for the next one”, he began by saying, guaranteeing that he has already seen improvements after the draw with Ipswich .
“Above all the result, I think we controlled the game well, then we suffered two transitions… and the final ten minutes where we suffered a lot, but otherwise I think we had good moments, we controlled the game much better with the ball, we were more aggressive, we created more chances, I also know that the Premier League is different from the Europa League , but we had moments with more quality than against Ipswich . Without a doubt [that processes take time to assimilate] we saw more today, but obviously we need time and the players need to assimilate that. We rotated the team and we have to continue on this path”, he explained, commenting on the fact that he celebrated his team’s second goal, the first by Hojlund .
“I’m not much of a party-goer, but I think the team needed it, the team deserved it and it was an important moment in the game and that’s what happened, we drew level and then in the second half we turned the result around, deservedly so,” he said, revealing that his family is coming to Old Trafford for the Everton game . “No, the kids have school, they’re finishing their exams and that’s more important than a football game, but the family will be here at the weekend, the friends are always cheering at home and so I never feel alone in that regard.
The 39-year-old ended the interview with a message for Portugal: “I miss you, everyone in Portugal, and keep up the good luck. I’m happy with all the players, whether they’re Portuguese or not, they’re all my sons, let’s say, and so I’m very happy with what they’re doing.”
