Perhaps the only minor misstep on a note-perfect night for Ruben Amorim was when he began to walk towards the tunnel after hugging his players and shaking the hands of the officials for his last game in charge of Sporting Lisbon.
In the vibrant afterglow of a stunning 4-2 comeback victory over Braga, Amorim momentarily forgot to acknowledge the 3,000 or so Sporting fans high up at the Municipal Stadium. He soon realised and swivelled back, giving those jubilant followers what they had come for — a celebratory farewell from the man who has fulfilled their dreams.
In the press conference afterwards, Amorim said a movie could be made about his time at the club given the tale of success. He steered Sporting to a first Portuguese title in 19 years, then another, and now leaves them on 11 wins in a row to start a campaign which may end in the first back-to-back championships since 1954.
As a final scene, this match provided a stirring climax before the credits rolled. Back at the club where he did such a compelling job in two months as head coach that Sporting decided to pay the €10million release clause to hire him in March 2020, Amorim had to dig deep into his well of resilience, inspiration and serendipity.
Braga, managed by Carlos Carvalhal, once of Swansea City and Sheffield Wednesday, claimed a two-goal lead at the interval. Captain Ricardo Horta, who played under Amorim when he was in charge of Braga, scored both goals, the first aided by a poor clearance by Zeno Debast, the second coming at the end of a slick counter.
As the pitchside cannisters shot flames into the air and thousands in Braga red went potty, Amorim crouched on his haunches staring across the grass, and it was hard not to think his time was coming to a sour end.
Ariana Azevedo, a broadcaster for Antena 1, Portuguese National Radio, had seen this story before though. “Sporting will win this,” she insisted after watching Amorim hurry to the dressing room.
Azevedo, a broadcaster for Antena 1, Portuguese National Radio (Laurie Whitwell/The Athletic)
At half-time, Amorim replaced Debast with Jerry St Juste and then, only 10 minutes into the second half, he made a double substitution by sending on Hidemasa Morita and Conrad Harder. Morita scored with his first touch, hammering in after St Juste had hit the post with a header from Geovany Quenda’s corner.
Having swapped Gery Catamo for the injured Pedro Goncalves in the first half, Amorim made his final substitution with 10 minutes to go, putting on defender Goncalo Inacio.
Three minutes later, Morten Hjulmand struck a screamer from 25 yards to level the contest. When the game restarted Amorim was so engrossed he edged onto the pitch clapping and pointing. In the 90th minute, Harder delivered a precise finish from the edge of the area to provoke ecstasy and green flares in the away end. Amorim was mobbed by his players.
Azevedo said: “This is Ruben Amorim, the guy has luck and knowledge. He is going away yet everyone is with him.”
Harder added a fourth in the 95th minute and afterwards, Amorim said that moment was “more important” than beating Manchester City 4-1 last Tuesday. Maybe because in a spectacular ground constructed out of the Monte do Castro quarry, Sporting had given a granite performance.
As Sporting fans sang about becoming champions, a chant requested by Amorim at his final pre-match press conference, he spread his arms wide as if to ask, “Are you not entertained?”
Any sense of bitterness over his exit during the campaign, as shown by some Sporting fans when news first broke, has subsided. The feeling now is overwhelmingly of gratitude.
Antonio Bugalho said as much earlier in the day during a break from chanting while in Braga city centre. “It’s pride — letting go of the best manager we’ll ever have,” he explained. “I will never speak badly of Ruben Amorim. United don’t know the manager they have. He has a really good relationship with the players. He has the right ideas (and is) always honest with the public. It’s a special occasion.”
Bugalho says he will never speak badly of Amorim (Laurie Whitwell/The Athletic)
The waving of huge flags and boisterous singing by those who had travelled north from Lisbon, which echoed around the cobbled streets of Braga, was testament to that.
Francisca Belo agreed. “It is not angry, a little bit disappointed of course because it is the beginning of the season,” she said. “Back-to-back is a big thing. But we are ok with the team now. It is important to be here. It’s the last dance.”
Her cousin, Antonio Teixeira added: “There are routines in the team. You don’t need the manager. Ruben Amorim said, ‘The machine is well oiled.’”
Vasco Collaco was reflective: “It’s very sad news, but it’s life. It’s a good opportunity for him. He was a historical manager for Sporting. I am very grateful to him and wish him the best. The Premier League is unpredictable, but I think he can do great things at Man United because it is a team in bad form like Sporting was in the beginning.”
Later, up in the stands, Azevedo acknowledged Amorim, at 39 years old, will have to contend with questions over his experience. “People may be sceptical because of his age, but I believe he is ready,” she said. “He is not the Special One because that is Jose Mourinho, but he is pretty special. I am 100 per cent sure he is going to be one of the best.”
In the post-match press conference, Amorim got emotional at times. He thanked Braga president Antonio Salvador “because he bet on me, it was a risky bet, but he trusted me.”
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has now gambled on Amorim restoring United to one of the best teams in England, and eventually Europe. United wanted a head coach on an upward trajectory, who could shoulder the weight of the club through a compelling charisma. He has certainly displayed a nuance of language to tackle tough issues.
“I made some mistakes, but the team was always first,” he said. “This was the only time in four-and-a-half years I thought about me. I ask for forgiveness, this was my time, my way, I need to be body and soul in a project.”
Cousins Antonio Teixeira and Francisca Belo ahead of Amorim’s final game (Laurie Whitwell/The Athletic)
He added that the “secret of Sporting is also that man right there” — meaning director of football Hugo Viana, who watched Amorim’s last words as head coach. Amorim said the quality of players signed made his job easier.
He gave a major hint he will play his 3-4-3 system from the off at United, explaining: “I know how I am going to play in the beginning because you have to start with a structure that you know. We don’t have a lot of time to train, so I have to show something that I know very well.”
He will have talks with Ruud van Nistelrooy in Manchester once he flies in on Monday, but by not affirming a place for United’s interim manager the direction of travel seems clear. “About a legend of the club, he did a great job. I have to talk with him, then I will explain everything.”
Amorim is said to want to bring with him from Sporting three assistant coaches — Emanuel Ferro, Adelio Candido and Carlos Fernandes — plus goalkeeping coach Jorge Vital, sports scientist Paulo Barreira and a fitness coach, Goncalo Alvaro. Work permits for the six staff members, and Sporting’s stance on losing them, are factors.
Amorim is not shying away from the heritage of the club, even if United want him to write new history. Asked by a Portuguese journalist who he would like to have a meal with out of Sir Alex Ferguson, Roy Keane, Eric Cantona, and Rio Ferdinand, he embraced the scenario. “Alex Ferguson was someone very special, he’s above everyone else at that club,” he said. “But it would be difficult to choose anyone. I will try to have lunch and dinner with all of them.”
If he replicates his Sporting achievements in England, he will have the people of Manchester trying to buy him lunch and dinner for the rest of his life.
(Top photo: Pedro Loureiro/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images)
