Manchester United preseason: Amorim aiming for fresh start

CHICAGO — Ruben Amorim arrived in the U.S. for Manchester United‘s preseason tour with a smile back on his face.

It had disappeared by the end of last season. In his postmatch news conference after the painful 1-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Europa League final on May 21, the Portuguese coach looked like a beaten man. He snapped back at reporters who suggested the performance in Bilbao, Spain, had been poor, even offering to walk away without compensation if the board decided he wasn’t right for the job.

But time back in Portugal with his family during his summer break has allowed for a reset and at the start of a pivotal summer for the club, Amorim looks relaxed and content. He was back in his usual jovial mood during training at the Chicago Bears’ Soldier Field, pointing and laughing at physical performance coach Charlie Owen as Owen modeled a striking silver cooling jacket the players will wear after warmups and at halftime to help moderate their body temperature.

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There was some mild frustration that it took longer than expected to bring in Bryan Mbeumo. But with the Cameroon international and Matheus Cunha now signed, Amorim’s demand that more goal scorers be added to the squad has been met. United managed just 44 goals in the Premier League last season — Cunha and Mbeumo scored 35 between them for Wolves and Brentfordrespectively.

There are other positions Amorim would like addressed — primarily, center forward and central midfield — but he wants to remain cautious. There’s an acceptance throughout the club that it’s just as important to avoid signing the wrong players as it is to sign the right ones. “I think our club, in this moment, we need to be really careful when we sign a player,” Amorim said at his first news conference of the summer.

It’s not lost on Amorim that one of the biggest issues United face in the window is trying to offload Antony and Jadon Sancho — two players signed for a combined £160 million within the past four years. A year ago, Erik ten Hag was forced into an uneasy truce with Sancho, who was included in the Dutchman’s touring squad despite spending nearly 10 months in exile. The feeling was that reintegrating Sancho would help keep his value up while the club looked to move him on; Ten Hag, however, felt it could come across as a dent to his authority after initially taking such a hardline stance.

Amorim has made it clear that Sancho, Antony, Alejandro Garnacho and Tyrell Malacia are all surplus to requirements, and he has already won the backing of the board. Instead of Amorim being asked to keep them as part of the group, all four players have been left at home.

It’s a strong statement that the standards set by Amorim and his staff are being prioritized above anything else. During conversations with Cunha and Mbeumo, Amorim was keen to find out why they were motivated to move to Old Trafford. He was impressed that they both turned down clubs in the Champions League to sign for United. He wants only players who are committed to the club.

“From day one of preseason, it’s about standards and details,” Mason Mount said. “Obviously on the pitch and off the pitch and really focusing on us as a group and what we need to do to be better and to perform. [Amorim] is massive on details.”

Amorim, who has been starting work at 6 a.m. each day on tour, has tried to balance his own intensity with giving his players some freedom. The team hotel in Chicago — the Waldorf Astoria — is close to a number of designer shops, and the squad has been allowed out in the evenings after training. Cunha and Lisandro Martínez came back with bags from Ksubi after a trip out Thursday night.

Next door to the directors’ meeting room at the Waldorf is the players’ recreation room. It’s equipped with a table tennis table, dart board, basketball game and cornhole set. Packs of cards sit on the round tables dotting the room. On Sunday, the players used their downtime to watch England‘s penalty shootout victory over Spain in the final of the Women’s Euros. Afterward, some went to Rate Field to watch the Chicago White Sox host the Cubs.

The focus, though, has been training. A lack of time between games became a major issue for Amorim last season. For the first time since his appointment in November, he can plan specific sessions to support his tactical demands without worrying too much about rest and recovery.

“We have a lot of time to train now,” Matthijs de Ligt said after kicking off the tour with a 2-1 win over West Ham United at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. “That aspect is really, really important.”

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There have also been efforts to repair the players’ confidence after United’s worst season for more than 50 years. There’s concern that finishing 15th, losing 18 league games and crumbling in the Europa League final to Tottenham has taken a significant psychological toll. Amorim has tried as much as possible to draw a line under last season and help players take baby steps toward generating more self-belief. Things as small as a good pass in training are being celebrated to reinforce the message that, despite what happened last season, the group is still full of good players.

“We haven’t done loads of analysis of last season,” Mount said. “We looked at a few areas that we can improve on, but this is a new season.

“Coming into this season with a different kind of attitude and a feeling about it and we’re ready to go. The small improvements on the pitch or off the pitch — [Amorim] has been really, really big on that. It’s small little details here and there that he sees. It’s just seeing those moments and everyone understanding that it matters. That small little movement, the pass, the appreciation — this all counts, and these small wins will help us.”

Victory over West Ham in the tour opener on Saturday was another small win. It was telling that De Ligt said afterward it was nice to experience the feeling again, albeit in a friendly fixture. The last game he started that ended in victory was all the way back in March.

There will come a time when Amorim needs bigger successes to ensure he gets the time he needs to see his project through. Despite looking to exude positivity whenever he can, he won’t escape his Premier League record of just seven league wins from 27 attempts until it starts to change. Arsenal at home is a daunting way to start the new campaign.

With Amorim rejuvenated and recharged, for now the smile is back on his face. The key question is: How long will it last?