Carragher compares Amorim at Man Utd to Potter at Chelsea – but backs Ten Hag difference to prevent sack

Jamie Carragher has described Manchester United’s recent form as ‘horrendous’ amid a warning that new head coach Ruben Amorim is mirroring Graham Potter’s ill-fated spell at Chelsea – but has explained why he doesn’t think it will end the same way.

Amorim was chosen as the replacement for Erik ten Hag by Man Utd in November, but the change hasn’t had the desired effect yet. The club were 14th in the Premier League when Amorim was appointed and are still 14th now, having lost their past three top-flight games without even scoring.

Amorim is under no illusions that Man Utd are battling to stay away from the relegation zone, while some pundits have predicted he might become a victim should their struggles continue.

And now, Carragher has compared Amorim’s current situation to what happened with Potter – a promising head coach who left a job where he’d made good progress mid-season to step up to a perceptibly bigger one, only to struggle and only last seven months before being sacked by Chelsea.

Carragher told the Daily Telegraph: “Amorim’s arrival was supposed to echo Jurgen Klopp’s at Liverpool, both in terms of the point of the season at which he took over, and the galvanising impact on players and supporters. Currently, Amorim’s reign has more in common with Graham Potter’s brief spell at Chelsea, where a deteriorating situation was made worse.

“Five defeats for United in the past six league games is horrendous. Even the last win, against Manchester City, was due to a freakish finale rather than an excellent 90-minute performance.

“Before rushing to the conclusion it will end the same way for Amorim as for Potter, there are some key differences between Potter’s performance at Chelsea and the situation at United.

“I was never convinced the Englishman was suited to Stamford Bridge. That was a hunch based on the culture of the club, where fans are accustomed to seeing ready-made, superstar managers such as Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti and Antonio Conte. Chelsea have always struck me as needing an extrovert to impose their authority with a big personality, even when speaking to the media. Potter is a different character.”

And not only can Carragher envisage a better final fate for Amorim than Potter, the pundit also thinks the new boss has some traits that his predecessor Ten Hag didn’t, which could stand him in good stead.

Carragher continued: “Amorim, on the other hand, carries the aura of a top coach. Unlike Erik ten Hag, he looks and sounds the part. Listening to him gives you confidence he knows exactly what he wants from his players, and given the time and resources he will succeed.

“Under Ten Hag, United looked like a collection of individuals with no idea what system they were meant to play.

“Under Amorim, the system is identifiable but he has been dealt a poor hand. There is no obvious solution without an immediate injection of significantly more talented footballers to execute his plan.”

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Man Utd board blamed for Amorim struggles

Amorim has stuck faithfully to his preferred tactics for Man Utd so far, even though they are different to what the squad was used to before under Ten Hag.

And for that reason, Carragher has questioned the Man Utd hierarchy – rather than Amorim’s principles – for how they have handled the situation.

The former Liverpool defender said: “Amorim’s instinct was to stay at Sporting Lisbon before embarking on an Old Trafford rebuild in the summer of 2025. His initial instincts were probably correct.

“United might have found the right man for the job and hired him at the worst time.

“The club’s hierarchy has a lot to answer for. Appointing the prime target as soon as possible is understandable. What is harder to explain is this: how could you have given a £200 million budget to a lame-duck coach who plays 4-2-3-1 four months before recruiting a manager who plays three central defenders and wing-backs?

“The Manchester United executives in charge of football operations are the architects of this mess, not Amorim.”

Man Utd transfer news roundup

With the January transfer window now open, Man Utd have the chance to strengthen Amorim’s squad and tailor it more to his liking.

They will need to sell some players to be able to do so, though, since they do not have the funds for major signings at this moment in time.

One clever solution that has just been speculated would be for Man Utd to sell Marcus Rashford in a swap deal to sign Victor Osimhen from Napoli.

It comes after Amorim was said to be demanding an accelerated attempt to sign Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting, which seems difficult to pull off in January.

Elsewhere, Man Utd are making progress towards the signing of Nuno Mendes from PSG, who would also be reuniting with Amorim after their previous work together in Lisbon.

Amorim’s Man Utd stats so far