If it wasn't for , we would have heard a lot more about the impending arrival of this week. A man considered by but ultimately decided against with favored, he has now landed at Manchester United.
Inheriting something of , Amorim will face the challenge of turning around the fortunes of a roster lacking quality and balance. And he will have to attempt to do that in the middle of a season, when the need to get points on the board and drag the Red Devils up the table is paramount: Manchester United is currently 13th.
Already this season, Liverpool has highlighted just how big a job Amorim has to complete. At Old Trafford, when , the gulf was clear.
While Liverpool looked well coached and understanding the ideas that their head coach wanted to implement — just a few weeks into the role, don't forget — Manchester United had next to no plan. Ten Hag had two years to deliver but couldn't put his plans in place or develop any kind of recognizable style; on home turf, that was brutally exposed.
Getting to grips with the could prove to be a test for Amorim but putting in place a new way of playing — building the plane as you are flying it — will only make that even tougher. Nevertheless, it sounds like he will be instilling his back-three formation immediately.
"We know it will take time and we will try to win time with the games," Amorim said during his . "‘But we have to start since day one without fear, without thinking that [players] are not used to playing like this.
"This is not on my mind. They will start on the first day with our idea, no matter what. That's the goal. I know that it’s going to be tough. I know it's a massive challenge, but I feel quite relaxed."
Changing system and having a complete refresh is difficult enough even with a full summer to work on it. That's exactly why Slot didn't try to change too much at once. Doing it when the relentless English schedule is just about to kick in, though, is another level of challenge altogether.
"It is one thing that you have to feel that this is and and it's normal," Amorim continued. "If you are a lot of years without winning, you start losing that.
"So you have to be very clear on the message that you want to put on the players. I think we need to put all the players doing the same thing, to regain that feeling."
He is right, of course, that something drastic needs to change at Old Trafford, and in some respects, he is saying all the right things. What Liverpool and Slot have already proven, though, is that going through the process step by step and slowly is much likelier to work.
The two situations are not comparable in some ways — Amorim is entering a dumpster fire while Slot inherited a team on the up. Trying to do too much in one go, however, would be a risky approach in either scenario, which the major challenge at Manchester United perfectly clear.