Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim appears to have reached the end of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's patience.
The Portuguese was brought into Manchester United midway through last season as the replacement for Erik ten Hag, following the Dutchman's dismissal after just over two years in charge.
But with the Red Devils failing to win consecutive Premier League fixtures under Amorim – and floundering in the bottom half of the table once more – the 40-year-old is yet to instil any kind of upturn following Ten Hag.
Manchester United chief Sir Jim Ratcliffe makes Ruben Amorim sack decision
United lost the Manchester Derby over the weekend to Manchester City, with Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville suggesting that there could be an “outcry” if form didn't pick up for his former side in the next few weeks.
Amorim is already out of the League Cup after a now-infamous loss at Grimsby Town, while the former Sporting boss has refused to deviate from his 3-4-2-1 shape despite losing 16 of his 42 games in charge.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), The United Stand have relayed a report from transfer expert Ben Jacobs giving an update on Amorim's future.
According to Jacobs, INEOS billionaire and Red Devils minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe thinks that Amorim should have the tools at his disposal to qualify for the Champions League, and that the Portuguese's job security will be “more seriously discussed” if the current trajectory continues.
With Ratcliffe having told the BBC earlier this year that several Manchester United players were “not good enough”, it appears that the petrochemicals mogul has adjusted his expectations – and given the significant investment made into the squad, United seemingly must qualify for Europe this time for the Portuguese to keep his job.
FourFourTwo understands that there are no discussions around sacking Amorim at current – in part thanks to CEO Omar Berrada giving Amorim considerable backing when he led the process to hire the Portuguese – but should United continue down the same path, even Berrada will have no choice but to consider his pick a failure.
While no obvious candidate is waiting in the wings to assume the hot seat at Old Trafford, the Mail have reported that Benfica might be about to offer United a lifeline in taking Amorim back to Lisbon.
Manchester United take on Chelsea this weekend when Premier League action returns.
