Sporting boss Ruben Amorim preparing for ‘different world’ at Manchester United
Amorim enjoyed the perfect send-off from the Jose Alvalade Stadium on Tuesday as Sporting came from behind to win 4-1 against Manchester City.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ruben Amorim insists nothing can be read into Sporting Lisbon’s stunning defeat of Manchester City as he prepares for a “different world” at Manchester United.
Amorim enjoyed the perfect send-off from the Jose Alvalade Stadium on Tuesday as his Sporting side came from behind to thrash City 4-1 in his final home match before taking charge at Old Trafford next week.
The 39-year-old will come up against City again in a Manchester derby in little over a month’s time, but he does not think Sporting’s remarkable Champions League triumph will have any bearing.
“This doesn’t mean anything in particular,” said the Portuguese, who will officially leave Sporting and head to Manchester after their game at Braga on Sunday.
“It’s misleading. We cannot transport one reality to another context. Man Utd cannot play the same way we do. We will have to adapt.
“When I arrive in Manchester I will be living in a different world with a different starting point.
“This was a one-off and we had luck on our side. I will take this to the Premier League, but it will be different in Manchester. It will be fun and I am ready for the challenge.”
I was playing with words when I said that, it was a joke
Sporting looked like they could be in for a long night as Phil Foden opened the scoring inside four minutes and City created numerous other chances in the first half.
The game turned after former Coventry striker Viktor Gyokeres – linked with a move to Amorim’s United – broke away to equalise just before the break.
Maximiliano Araujo put Sporting ahead early in the second half and Gyokeres went on to sink the visitors by completing a hat-trick with two penalties, although City’s Erling Haaland did miss a potentially pivotal spot-kick.
Amorim had quipped before the game that he would be built up as the ‘new Sir Alex Ferguson’ if he beat City, but he was quick to play that down and insist he would not be reading any media reports.
He said: “I was playing with words when I said that, it was a joke.
“I am not going to read anything for six months. I did this when I came to Sporting and I will do it again.
“The only way I can do my job is to work and focus on the team.
“With City missing their penalty, everything went very well for Sporting.”