MANCHESTER UNITED boss Ruben Amorim desperately needs Europa League glory to save his season – and his reputation.
Because right now Amorim is statistically the WORST of all the United managers to take the hot seat since Sir Alex Ferguson left 12 years ago.
Only victory over Lyon in the Europa League quarter-final second leg would be enough to take the Portuguese ahead of the much-mocked Ralf Rangnick in terms of win percentage in all competitions.
And even that stat is padded by a friendly Europa League fixture list – with Amorim’s Premier League record, at just over ONE point per game, by FAR the worst of all bosses.
Amorim is already guaranteed to lead United to their most dismal domestic record since Fergie left, after leading them to the 13th title of his reign in his farewell campaign of 2012/13.
In fact, it’s likely to be the club’s worst season since they were last relegated in 1974.
To make matters even worse, hated rivals Liverpool are on the verge of winning their 20th English crown, which would draw them level with United and put them back on the perch that Ferguson knocked them off.
And Liverpool fans are not so busy preparing to celebrate that they haven’t noticed one incredible comparison to their own days in the doldrums.
How Amorim compares to a manager from their own days in the doldrums.
Roy Hodgson’s short-lived reign at Anfield will forever be remembered as one of the most disastrous of any manager at a Big Six club in history.
Hodgson was sacked in January 2011 after replacing Rafael Benitez and somehow steering Liverpool into a relegation battle.
But even he harvested 25 POINTS in 20 Premier League games before being axed.
Amorim has just 23 POINTS from 21 games in charge – with just six wins and ten defeats.
United were just four points off the Champions League spots in the Prem when Amorim arrived to much fanfare.
The 40-year-old was touted as the bright young thing who would steer the club into a better future.
Instead he has presided over the worst run of any United boss in the Prem era.
And United now sit 14th in the table, three points above 17th and a whole SEVENTEEN points behind neighbours Manchester City in fifth.
In all competitions, Amorim’s record is worse even than Rangnick, who won just 37.9 per cent of his games in interim charge during that weird transitional season of 2021/22.
The Austrian and Amorim are the only successors to Ferguson who have failed to win at least half of their games in charge.
Even David Moyes, who lasted just one season as the direct replacement for his fellow Scot, managed that.
And Jose Mourinho, who famously claimed taking United to second in the league in 2017/8 was one of his greatest achievements, sits proudly top of the table in the post-Fergie world.
Amorim is well off matching countryman Mourinho’s Old Trafford record.
But at least beating Lyon would give Amorim his 13th victory in 33 games, taking his overall win percentage to 39.4 – just ahead of Rangnick’s 37.9.
Whatever the result against the French side, the United boss still has it all to do in the league.
Only if Amorim wins ALL SIX remaining Prem matches will his win percentage reach 44.4 to overtake Rangnick’s.
And even in that unlikely scenario, his points per game would still be lower, at 1.52 to the Austrian’s 1.54.
In a season where up to 11 English clubs could qualify for European competition, United have been so bad that they have little chance of doing it by league position.
They are already guaranteed to ‘beat’ their lowest finish of the Premier League era, which was seventh under Moyes.
And their only hope of a return to the Champions League is to win the Europa League title in May.
It really is s**t or bust for Amorim and United against Lyon. Many fans fear that they will deliver the former.
