. The Portuguese has a reputation as an astute man-manager as well as an innovative tactician but it will not all be sweetness and light.
The 39-year-old begins life as head coach at Ipswich on Sunday aware of the task ahead as he tries to turn United around. Amorim arrived with the team 13th in the Premier League after four wins from 11 matches and needing to improve results if they are to have ambitions of European qualification for next season.
“I can be ruthless when I have to be,” Amorim said. “If you think as a team I will be the nicest guy that you have ever seen, if there is someone just thinking that, I will be a different person. I’m not that kind of guy that wants to show that he is a boss. They will feel it in the small details. I can be the smiling one, but then when you have a job to do I will be a different person, and they understand that.”
Amorim insists he will take risks to change the tactics and style but will have limited training time because of United’s hectic schedule. There will be two games a week for the foreseeable future as United balance domestic and European competition. Amorim will get his first taste of Old Trafford on Thursday when Bodø/Glimt visit in the Europa League.
“It’s so much harder to come to a team in the middle of the season,” Amorim said, “because you have to know the players during the games, so you are talking about no national-team periods to work with the players – it’s just games. If you are winning, it’s a lot of fun having a lot of games, trying to make some changes tactically and winning. But if you are losing, you don’t have the time in training to work out everything you want to work.
“Where you can improve a team is in training; this is the most …
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